ABC: A Love Story
by dickard23
Summary: Sometimes, love appears when you least expect it. Sharon Raydor has devoted herself to work for a long time. She raised her family alone and never looked back. Now, someone is looking to fill a void in her life. Will she let love in or turn it away? This is going to be a 26 Chapter story, one for each letter. I have some letters picked out, but I will take suggestions.
1. A

A is for arrogant.

Sharon was ready to give up. This guy did not stop talking, about himself. _What the hell did this have to do with her case?_

**4 hours earlier**

A dead body was reported by a group of joggers out for their morning run. When the police responded, they found a woman, deceased, in a pit. They thought she might have gotten drunk and fallen in the pit, until the medical examiner came and noted the small caliber bullet to the back of her head. There were no signs of a struggle, so she either didn't know she was being followed or she turned her back on someone she knew and trusted. Provenza worked to keep the gawking public back as passersby appeared in the popular park. Captain Raydor appeared and took over. Dr. Morales got to work. Sykes and Sanchez went to canvas the area for witnesses, surveillance tapes, anything to give them an idea of who was around for this woman's demise. Flynn was chatting up some of the park rangers, who he knew from their days on the beat. After a stern look from the Captain, he got to working.

The victim was identified as Molly Quinn Anderson, age 34, an interior designer working for Los Angeles's rich and elite. Her family was back in Indiana, where she grew up. They had just heard from their daughter last week and thought all was well with her. They didn't hear from Molly too much. She left her small-town upbringing behind and never looked back, but her parents had high hopes that their little girl had made it. Now, they had a funeral to plan.

After talking to her neighbors, Major Crimes deduced that Molly had been dating one Alistair Callahan, a wealthy playboy, son of media mogul, Randall Callahan. It took a while to get ahold of him. His secretary kept them on hold for 10 minutes, just to tell them he was busy. He was actually playing angry birds on his iPad. It was only when Provenza mentioned a murder that his secretary put him on the line. They informed him of Molly's demise and asked him to come in to the station for some questions about his girlfriend.

He arrived driving a flashy sports car and wearing a suit that cost more than most people's monthly rent. Everything from his haircut to his perfect teeth to his sunglasses screamed expensive. He found his way to Major Crimes. He introduced himself and was lead to interview room 1.

"Mr. Callahan, we're very sorry for your loss. We just have a few que-"

_Phone rings_

"Sorry, do you mind?" Before Sharon could answer, he took the phone. "Hey Chloe. You ordered it. Great. I'm at LAPD, with Major Crimes. You're the best."

"Sorry, about that." He had an apologetic smile on his face. He almost looked sincere.

Sharon took a breath, one of her techniques for keeping her cool. "We just have few questions about your girlfriend."

"What about her?"

"When was the last time you saw her and under what circumstances?"

"Well, she came over the other day, uh Friday, and I thought it would just be our usual."

"You're usual."

"Fancy restaurant, lots of wine, back to my place for well, you know." Flynn smirked at that. "Then, I call her a cab, and she's safe and sound in her own bed, but on Friday, she was kooky."

"Kooky?"

"She was rambling and stuff; I don't know about what, but she seemed panicky one second, angry the next. I thought she was high or something."

"Did she use drugs often?"

"Not that I knew of, but you never really know, do ya? Anyway, when I saw this wasn't going to be a good night I called her friend to come get her."

"Her friend."

"Tracy Weston as in 'The Weston'. Anyway, someone needed to watch her, and I didn't have time for that, so I called Tracy, and Tracy took her home."

"Did you talk to Molly after that?"

"She apologized the next day on the phone, said something about stress from work getting to her and she took one too many muscle relaxants or something."

"Do you know what about work was causing so much stress?"

"Not really. I'm gonna be honest here. My relationship with Molly was not exactly _An Affair to Remember_. I would take her out to nice dinners. We would have sex. I really had no reason to delve into her personal life more than necessary. I actually avoid that with women. It keeps things, well cleaner."

Before Sharon could ask her next question, there was a knock on the door.

"Delivery"

"What?" Flynn was confused.

"That's for me." Alistair got up and tipped the delivery driver who brought him his lunch. "I hope you don't mind. I was rather busy and didn't have time to eat, so I had my secretary send my lunch here."

"You what?" This was a new one for the Captain.

He took out a paper plate and began to load it with twice cooked pork, rice, and beef ribs. "Want a bite?"

"I'm good." Sharon was hardly about to eat lunch with a person of interest in her murder room.

Alistair managed to eat and talk about himself, quite the multi-tasker. He didn't offer much about Molly at all. His retelling of their relationship was mostly about him and how impressed she was with him, how the ladies were always impressed with his car, his boat, his opera box, etc and how he had impressed a lot of ladies._ What an egomaniac!_ Sharon thought as she put up with his babbling. Well, at least they could try and see what this friend Tracy had to say.

When the interview was over, Mr. Callahan stood up, looked Sharon up and down and said it was a pleasure to meet you. "If you need me, you know where to find me," he said with a suggestive voice.

Sharon was mortified. Flynn was trying not to crack up. "I gotta hand it to him," Flynn said as they headed back to the murder room. "He just goes for it." Flynn couldn't believe this guy was brazen enough to hit on the cop investigating his girlfriend's murder, talk about true player.

Sharon gave him a look. "Not another word."

After that glorious interview, the team went to track down Tracy and see if they could figure out what had Molly in such a panic. If her murder was work related, they wanted to figure out what was going on before they interviewed her boss and coworkers.

As it turned out, Tracy was actually helpful. She said that Molly had a new client that was causing her a lot of stress. He had wanted her to redesign his home, and he told her to rush it, so she spent all day and sometimes all night making plans as to his instructions and when it was time to get his final approval, he snapped, saying he hated it all. It wasn't what he wanted. Why was she trying to rush him? The final straw was when he told her to start from scratch. She had tiles picked out, people ready to install lights, etc. This would not help her relationships with others in the industry and could affect her work with future clients. "She was really upset," Tracy noted. "It took me 20 minutes to calm her down enough for her to explain to me, what was going on."

"Did she ever tell you the client's name?"

"No. She was really professional that way. You don't stay in the industry long badmouthing the paycheck."

Well, unfortunately for Molly, she didn't stay long in the industry at all. "Thank you for your time, Tracy."

"Find out who did this," was her only reply as she headed out the door. Molly had been a good friend to her. Tracy wanted the bastard who did this to get his.


	2. B

B is for Bossy

Captain Raydor didn't get to be a woman in charge by being passive. She got there by being bossy. It didn't hurt that she was clever, quick-thinking, eloquent, and had a great taste in clothes, but being bossy was definitely a factor. She had tough skin and could deal with the insults that came with a woman in charge, bitch, witch, cunt... It hurt, but Sharon had the ability to suppress it.

Today, Sharon needed her bossiness to deal with Molly's boss, who was not very happy that she was interviewing her coworkers.

"We have very important clients, who do not want the personal details of their homes revealed for the world to see."

"I'm not here to snoop on your clients. I'm here to solve a murder, and our victim was nervous enough about her job that she was taking muscle relaxers, and I intend to figure out why"

"But..."

"And if you interfere my investigation, then I will have no other option that to consult the district attorney about obstruction of justice charges." Sharon slowed down as she said the last part, making sure that he heard her every word. He was bright red, but he knew when he was beat. He sulked back to his office, "bitch," he muttered under his breath, quietly enough, so that Raydor could pretend she didn't hear him, but loud enough, so that she most certainly did.

As usual, Sharon ignored him and went back to her job, interviewing the employees.

Molly's cubicle had been right next to Kelly's, and Kelly was a blabbermouth.

"Don't worry about the boss," she told the Captain. "He's just upset because his wife threatened to divorce him, for like the umpteenth time."

"Duly noted. So about Molly."

"Oh yeah. She's been having a rough time. Her new client, Rob Krammer, did not like any of the plans that she had for his home."

"Did he say what was wrong?"

"He said it was all wrong. Molly was stunned. She said she did exactly what they had discussed at their meeting last month, but when she put it to paper, he hated it."

"Maybe he just changed his mind."

"He was irate. I could hear him through the phone. It was like he never wanted the plan at all, not that he changed his mind. Molly was literally shaking." Kelly had a way of speaking like she was asking a question. Her voice would go up a bit at the end of each sentence. It was quite irritating.

"What did she do after the phone call?"

"She just kind of stood there, stunned. After a while, she went back to making new plans, but they were just kind of doodles. I think her mind was totally out of it."

"Do you know where she kept her plans?"

Kelly showed her the online drive where everyone kept their work. She downloaded Molly's last project onto a flash drive.

Sharon took it with her back to the murder room, along with Molly's notebook

Tao got to work, trying to get some insight as to what caused all of the chaos. "It appears our victim was very thorough. She took down notes of what her clients wanted, then she did sketches, got samples and quotes, made some 3-D modeling of the project. It appears that her plan was very close to what was requested."

"I wonder why Mr. Kramer changed his mind. What do we know about him?"

Rob was a successful director who got his big break after his independent film won an award at Sundance. He has been in demand every since, and apparently, wanted to redo his marital home. His wife is a well-known tax-lawyer, who represents Hollywood's wealthiest tax-dodgers. They had plenty of money to redo their home. _Why balk on the project?_

Maybe money's running out? "Let's see what we can find out about the Kramers' finances, shall we?"

"On what basis? We'll need a court order."

"Not to peruse public records. Let's start with any real property, automobiles, and publicly traded stocks and securities. Also, any publicly available information on Mrs. Kramer's law firm."

The team got to work. They started looking at deeds, mortgages, car titles, securities information, the works. Soon, they realized there were a lot of accounts with a lot of bizarre financial implications. They would need the help of an accountant, and possibly a property lawyer, to help them sort all of this out.


	3. C

C is for Charming

The media went wild with the murder case as soon as it was leaked that the victim had been dating Alistair Callahan. He hadn't thought of their relationship as serious, but he hardly wanted to project that Molly had just been a floozy. He made a brief media statement.

"I just wanted to say that Molly was a great woman. She was kind, worked hard and all she ever wanted was a chance to prove to the world what she could do. Unfortunately, someone cut her chance short, and I hope LAPD catches the bastard that did this." He looked up to the sky. "Molly, I'll miss you." And with that, he was gone. He hopped into an awaiting car and abandoned the fracas. The whole city saw a sad, but composed, celebrity share a touching moment with them. Women were swooning, such a charming man, well-dressed, handsome, and what was better than an attractive man brooding over love lost.

Alistair was used to losing his loved ones. His mom died of breast cancer when he was 17. Grief damn near killed his father. Alistair would never admit it, but he was afraid to get too close to a woman. He didn't see how love could be worth so much pain. Instead, he chose a hedonistic lifestyle, fancy cars, booze, lots of sex. Your heart couldn't break if you never offered it. He didn't love Molly, but he did like her, and her death wasn't easy. He purposefully avoided talking about her during his interview with the police yesterday, so he didn't break down. He downplayed their courtship to contain the sadness. He could really use some Scotch right now, but drinking because of sadness was no way to live. Watching his widower father taught him that.

Instead, he drove out to a shooting range and fired off his rifle, for hours. With earmuffs on his head, the only thing he could hear was a muffled recoil and the screeching of the targets as they went on a loop.

Sharon got home late after spending all day trying to figure out who were the Kramers. The clip of Mr. Callahan's press statement was playing nonstop, on seemingly every channel. Sharon turned off her television and looked for a book. The last thing she needed to see was an arrogant schmuck selling himself as America's mourning heartthrob. She couldn't believe that guy had the nerve to hit on her, hours after his girlfriend was discovered dead. What a cad!


	4. D

D is for devoted

Sharon always put her responsibilities ahead of her own needs. When her husband left, she channeled all of her energy into raising her two children and advancing her own career. She did her best to love her children enough for two parents and to keep moving up the ladder as opportunities struck. This left little to no time for her love life. Right now, she had a new responsibility, find Molly's killer.

"Shouldn't we spend more time on the boyfriend?" Flynn posited. "It's usually the boyfriend."

"Check and see if he has any registered weapons and what type of security system he has in his home."

"Why does that matter Captain?" Sanchez didn't see why the security system was relevant.

"Molly was murdered at about midnight. If he has video camera surveillance, which a lot of celebrities have these days, it would tell us if he were at home at midnight."

"Don't we need a warrant for that?"

"Well, let's see if he owns one first, and maybe if we ask nicely, he'll just show it to us."

"Maybe if you ask nicely," Flynn ribbed.

"What was that, Lieutenant?"

"Nothing, Captain."

"That's what I thought."

As it turned out, Mr. Callahan was glad to return. "Anything for law enforcement," he said with a cheeky grin. He had the security company send a copy of the tape, which showed him coming home at about 11PM, alone.

"I got home, took out my Scotch and watched Archer reruns. My favorite character is Malory. All she does is abuse Isis resources for her personal gain, and then she wonders why she has such a terrible spy agency. Jessica Walters has a way of always playing …."

"Thank you for your cooperation," Sharon interjected, speaking hurriedly. This was clearly her, we know you're innocent, now gtfo, voice.

Alistair stood up and extended is hand to the Captain. "It's always a pleasure seeing you," he said with a smile as he got ready to leave. He made a point of looking her up and down

Sharon couldn't believe this guy. She wanted to slap the grin right off his face. Before she could do that, Mr. Callahan was gone. When Sharon got back to the murder room, Flynn could see the agitation in her face. He opened his mouth to speak, and the Captain gave him a bitch glare that shut him up right away.

They redirected their attentions to the Kramers. As it turned out, the Kramers had a lot of assets, many of them acquired recently. They had a modest income before, but over the past two years, the cash started to come in faster and faster. Sharon was about to ask what had changed all of the sudden, when a familiar face entered the murder room.

"Agent Howard, to what do we owe this visit."

"Rumor has it that you are investigating the Kramers."

"They are persons of interest, and I take it the FBI is interested in them as well." Sharon had a way of drawing out FBI when she spoke.

"I'm not at liberty to say much about them, but the investigation is a purely federal matter."

"Yours may be, but murder is quite local."

"Did you say murder?" Fritz looked uncomfortable. This case was about to get really messy, really fast. Fritz called his boss to see what he should do at this point. His boss decided to come in and give a limited briefing.

"We are investigating Mrs. Kramer for securities fraud."

"That's how she made so much money, so quickly." Sharon was beginning to see the dots form in her head.

"There is a considerable amount of cash that is unaccounted for," Agent Howard added.

"And you want to find it before you indict her."

"Exactly."

Tao, could you put up those plans that Molly drafted again. The picture was getting clearer. Tao projected the plans on the screen.

"What the heck is this?" Fritz's boss demanded.

"This is our motive for murder."

Everyone else in the room looked confused, well except for Tao, he was beginning to see it. Molly's plans involved opening up space in the house by knocking down non-essential walls. Sharon had a theory. Mrs. Kramer had a lot of ill-gotten cash and had been making purchases over the last two years to dispose of the money. She must have hidden the remainder of the money somewhere, probably in the walls. Her husband, unaware of the walls' significance, hires a designer to redo the house, and they decide to take the walls out. Before Molly can finish her plans, Mrs. Kramer becomes aware that she is under investigation and cannot afford to have the walls come down and the cash revealed. She or her husband or both of them together killed Molly to keep her quiet.

"But why not just cancel the project all together?" said Sanchez. "They could have just told her they changed their mind, paid any money they owed, and been done with it. Killing Molly doesn't help their case."

"That is true," Sharon conceded. She thought again. "What if Molly went to their house and confronted them about changing their plans. Maybe she saw something she shouldn't have. She agreed to meet them in the park to get compensated for the work she did, and then she got ambushed."

"How do we prove this?" Provenza saw a lot of theory, but no evidence.

"I wonder if they have a security system." It was easy enough to get the Kramers to hand over the tape. They told them that a burglar had been in their neighborhood and they were hoping the security tapes could help identify him. Little did they know, it was all a ruse. The tape clearly showed Molly coming to their house at around 9PM, and Mrs. Kramer's car leaving around 11:30PM and not coming back until 1AM. They searched the dumpsters and rivers along the way from the park to the house, and they found a small pistol registered to a Vincent Kramer in the bottom of a dumpster. They had enough to bring the couple into custody, and FBI each got a search warrant for the house. They found money in one wall, and a hole that was in the other wall. Molly must have seen the cash when she went to their house that night.

The couple denied everything and they each retained counsel. Sharon wanted to pit them against each other, but in California, a spouse cannot be compelled to testify against the other. She needed to get as much evidence as she could against them. The gun was good, but it didn't tell them who was the shooter. The video helped, but it didn't sow what Molly had seen. The cash in the wall was a third piece, but it wasn't quite enough either.

SID was analyzing Mrs. Kramer's car. They swabbed the steering wheel to see if there was gunpowder residue on it, as well as checking for fingerprints, clothing fibers, hair, anything that could tell them who had been in the car recently. They found a piece of gum in a wrapper in the cup holder.

Each lawyer denied that his client had anything to do with the crime. It must have been the other spouse. Sharon would not give up so easily. She asked the neighbors if they had surveillance videos. Buzz sifted through the footage until he found one that clearly showed Mrs. Kramer's face. Now convinced that she killed the designer, Sharon and Andrea went to strike a deal. Sharon wanted a murder two charge, but Andrea settled for a manslaughter plea. Frustrated Sharon left the room, walking quickly. Andrea followed her. "Sharon, wait, this is better than you think it is."

"How can you say that? She killed a woman in cold blood to cover up her crimes and she'll get to walk in 6-10 years." They were right in front of Sharon's office now.

"No, she won't." Andrea had a knowing look on her face. They went into her office.

"What am I missing?"

"She just confessed to killing Molly because Molly saw the money and she threatened to go to the authorities."

"And you gave her an easy deal!"

"In state court. All we have to do is give her confession to the FBI and they have an easy federal case, killing someone to prevent her from testifying in a federal case is a capital offense. Mrs. Kramer just signed her own death warrant."

A small smile came across Sharon's face. She didn't let Molly down after all.

It didn't take long for the media to plaster the Kramers' faces all over the place.

Alistair watched on his widescreen at home as Mrs. Kramer was taken in handcuffs to the local jail. Molly's death had been vindicated.


	5. E

E is for eager.

Alistair wore a simple, dark suit for the funeral. This was not the time for him to make a fashion statement. He drove himself to the church and went inside. He offered his condolences to Molly's family before he got ready to say his final goodbye. They were surprised that she had been dating a celebrity and even more surprised that he arrived.

Molly's sister gave the eulogy, tearing up the whole time. "I always new she would be the one to get into the big city and do great things. She was just too bright of a star for the Earth to contain her. God wanted her back." The family chose to bury her in the city she loved. She never would have gone back to Indiana on her own; they weren't going to make her come back now.

Alistair managed to get away before the paparazzi came looking for him. There had been a drunken celebrity brawl and brunch at the Hilton that caught their attention first. He got in his car and drove away. Life is for the living, and he was eager to start living again.

When he got home, he called his friend Chris. "Hey man, what are you doing tonight?"

"Nothing." He thought for a second. "What did you have in mine."

"Karma. Let's get a table and get some people over there. I'm thinking Mischa and Kate might like to join us."

"On this short notice."

"You don't know how charming I can be. You call Mischa and I'll call Kate. Also, see if we can get Channing and the others to come too."

"Alright." Chris hung up. He thought it was kind of weird that Alistair was going from funeral to party monster; he just hoped this guy didn't overdo it.

Alistair made a call. "Hey Katie, honey. It's me, Ali and I was wondering if you would like to come out to Karma with me, and some other friends."

"Calling at the last minute. Did some other girl cancel on you?"

"You know me. I just decided to do this like 10 minutes ago."

"So I'm first on your list."

"You know it. Come on. Free drinks, great people, and if it gets boring, we'll find a better party."

"Well, I do like free and who's coming."

"You know Chris, Channing, Mischa."

"Well, alright. When?"

"10ish." He said 10 to get her there by 11:30.

"Bye Ali." Alistair actually hated being called Ali, but when girls loved it when he used a nickname with them, it made them feel like they were extra close or some crap. He made a few more phone calls, trying to get everyone in line.

Sharon had a chance to sleep in for once. Her murder was solved, and no one needed her for anything. After waking up, she was eager to have a nice, relaxing day: long, slow shower, make breakfast, read a good book. All was well in the Raydorverse. She just finished making breakfast, poached eggs with some turkey bacon, avocado, and tomato on whole wheat toast. Her hair was still wet from her shower. She pushed the hair to the back to spare her food, and she started to eat, fresh, healthy and the best part was, she was all to herself. _Isn't this nice?_ She just got to her second egg when the phone rang. "Hello"

"Hi Mom." It was Sharon's daughter Kelly.

"Hi Honey. How's New York?"

"It's good. Are you busy right now?"

"Nope. My case is solved, and I'm home alone eating breakfast."

"Only you would celebrate being home alone."

"It's peaceful. I work near all the time. It's nice to have some time to myself."

"Why not find someone to share your time with, like a man?"

"I don't need a man."

"Do you need a woman?"

"Very funny. I'm perfectly content."

"Let me guess, eating turkey bacon, avocado and tomato on a bagel."

"On whole wheat toast thank you. I'm watching my carbs."

"Wow! You're just exhilarating. Why can't you have fun."

"I am having fun."

"By reading a book."

"It's a fun book. I think you'd like Don Quixote."

"Well, I'll have to try it sometime, but seriously Mom. I don't want you to be lonely."

"I'm not lonely. I just live life on my own terms now."

"Sounds lonely to me."

"I'll call you later, Kelly. Bye."

Sharon was not lonely. She was perfectly happy having her condo to herself, nice and clean, and doing what she liked, when she felt like it. She went about her day as planned, reading, did a bit of yoga in the living room, a nice glass of wine with dinner. Somehow, it wasn't as great as she anticipated it being. She decided to call it an early night and go to bed.

Across town, the night was just getting started.

Alistair rolled up in a limo with Chris, and two B-list celebrities Chris knew from his film set, and they went into Karma. He got his favorite table, on the third floor, overlooking the dance floor and was promptly greeted with a waitress.

"How about we start with some shrimp cocktails, beef skewers and those little tomato salads they put in the shot glasses and a bottle of Cabo Uno?"

The waitress wrote down the order and went off to the bar. It was almost 11PM. The club was starting to fill up. These places all had a formula. The higher a floor you were on, the more you mattered. You either had too much money to care what you spent, or never spent any money at all because there was someone there to pay for you. The people on the middle floor were rich enough to escape the first floor, but not rich enough to spend infinite money. They were good for a few hundred dollars, so they were given a status token for that, but that was about it. The first floor was for the every day people who had to pay cover or for the girls with a nice enough rack to get by the bouncer with a smile and a wave. Alistair never knew what it was like to be an everyday people. He never really thought about it before. He suddenly wondered if he was missing something.

Soon, Mischa and Channing arrived, ready to join the party. They were going to need more alcohol. Kate still hadn't arrived, but she gets there when she gets there. He snapped his fingers. "Becky, I'm ready for my usual."

The waitress promptly sent out a bottle of aged rum and a glass pitcher of punch, one bowl of ceviche and another of caviar, and plates. The rum got poured into the punch and it was time to drink.

The rest of the night was a bit hazy. Eventually, Kate arrived and the drinking continued. They dined, gossiped, stared down at the little dots moving on the floor and even got to dancing at some point, well trying to dance. The booze was not on their side.

Alistair didn't remember how, but Kate ended up in his bedroom with him that night. He woke up not very happy. He was hungover, cold and not feeling the satisfaction that he usually did after a wild night, an obscenely high credit card bill, and a beautiful, naked woman in his bed. Somehow, it all wasn't enough for him anymore.


	6. F

F is for feisty.

Kate didn't stay long. She put on her dress from the day before and had Alistair's driver take her home.

Alistair, threw his sheets into the laundry, took a shower, and went downstairs for a recovery drink. He found that a mimosa was the best most fun way cure to a hangover.

He took the morning paper and read it as he drank. Planned Parenthood asking for donations. The Dodgers lost again, and a federal grand jury will be convening to investigate a series of business transactions involving the Kramers. Both of them might be facing serious jail time. "Good riddance," he mumbled. When he thought about the Kramers, especially Mrs. Kramer, first he got mad about what she did, then he got sad about the way Molly died, then his mind kind of went to jelly when he thought about Captain Raydor. She was pretty and smart and well-spoken, and almost nothing like the women he usually went for, but somehow, she just kept coming into his mind and refusing to leave. It must be those eyes he thought. Her eyes took him prisoner.

Sharon woke up and went for a morning bike ride. It was a lovely day out and biking was a great way to stay in shape, low impact, free transportation. As she went over a set a hills, she saw a small object moving towards her. It was getting closer and closer and making a noise. Penny, a boy's golden retriever, had escaped his grasp and had an affection for chasing cyclists. She tried to bite Sharon's wheel as she got close, but Sharon was able to get away. She had to sprint out of the park to keep herself and her bike in one piece. _Damn Dog! _Sharon thought, exhausted as she got to the exit. Where were his parents?

A sweaty mess, Sharon stripped out of her clothes and got into the shower. She got dressed, poured herself a bowl of cereal and flipped on the television. The dodgers lost again. She sighed and turned to the news, more reruns of yesterday's news. "No news is good news, for me." She turned off the tv and went to do some paperwork.

Monday came around and Major Crimes had a lot of work to do.

"I thought we closed this case," said Flynn in a huff. "Why are we doing all this stuff?"

"Because the US has a big indictment coming up, and we want to make sure Mrs. Kramer stays behind bars for a long time, so we will help them sort out this evidence." Sharon said, staring down Flynn, who was for some reason, in a contemptuous mood this morning.

Sykes was helping Tao try and figure out which lab results were in and what was outstanding, who tested what, etc.

Provenza was reading his newspaper.

"Am I missing something Lieutenant Provenza?" The Captain had no idea why he wasn't working.

"I don't know. I'm not your memory."

"What I meant was ..." _Oh I could just slap the asshole out of his head- what am I saying, no amount of slaps will do that_ "Is there a particular reason that you are reading the newspaper instead of working."

"Well, she already confessed, so if the FBI just submits that as their evidence, along with the tape and the cash and the gun, they have an instant guilty verdict, so I don't think there's anything …."

"Well, I think there's plenty for you to do. The US Attorney is on her way, and I'm sure you and Flynn will welcome her and help her with anything she needs today."

Provenza knew he was beat. He put his paper down and sat up. _Today was a day for boring paperwork._

Sharon was in her office, working away, when she got a call from downstairs that a witness was there to see her. She sent him up. A couple of minutes later came a knock.

"Come in."

The man entered the room, a nervous smile on his face.

"What are you doing here Mr. Callahan?"

"I have a crime to report." It's what he told the security guard downstairs, not that Sharon believed him. He had to see her eyes again, and he wasn't above using a ruse to do it.

The Captain shook her head. "Might I remind you that reporting a false crime is a crime, and you would be subject to arrest."

"Would you cuff me? If so, then …."

"Mr. Callahan. It is my job to investigate major crimes, not to cavort around with..."

"Why don't I see you after work then, like for dinner?"

"Why would you want to go to dinner with me?" Sharon knew what he wanted; she just couldn't figure why a guy who fools around with actresses and models would be interested in her."

"Well, I was thinking you and me, and a luxurious dinner at a high end restaurant followed by a trip to by house for a little late night fun."

"I'm not interested." She said very quickly and was ready to show him the door.

"Why not?" He was not used to getting a no, and he was curious as to why.

"What do you mean, why not? I could give you 100 reasons."

"I'll settle for three."

"You're too flashy, too superficial, and not that it's any of your business, but I do not do casual …" She was about to say sex but thought against it. "dalliances."

"Why not? You won't be worse for the wear."

"Excuse me!"

"So we go out to dinner, you get a great meal, top of the line drinks, a ride in my limo and a night of fun. If things go as planned, we can see each other again. If all else fails, you go right back to being a workaholic and ignoring your social life. Either way, you get a free meal out of it. You have nothing to lose."

Sharon couldn't believe this guy. She wasn't just a floozy who would run off with any self-centered guy for a free dinner, no matter how fancy it was.

"I do not exchange romantic favors for fancy dinners."

"Do you prefer jewelry because I happen to be friends with the woman who manages Tiffany's and …."

"Mr. Callahan." Somehow, Sharon was a loss of words for how to get rid of this guy. "When I date," well when Sharon used to date, "I seek out more than the material things, like money, booze, jewelry. I like deeper things companionship and trust, not that you would understand and not that this is any of your business."

"Then why are you telling me," he countered with a smile. "And who says that I don't understand deeper stuff?"

"You already told me that you keep yourself disconnected when it comes to women. How about we disconnect right now!"

"Touche! So I have reputation for being a playboy. It's well-earned, I know, but old dogs can learn new tricks."

"You expect me to believe that."

"Why not. It's true." Sharon interested him in a way that no woman had ever done before. She was thoughtful and challenging; she would push his buttons and he wanted to push right back.

"Your sunglasses are not helping your cause." Who wears sunglasses indoors anyway?

"They complete the outfit." He took off his Chrome Hearts and put them on Sharon. "They look great on you," he said with a smile.

Sharon shook her head. "Mr. Callahan, I think it's time you get going."

"Until we meet again." Alistair was not discouraged. Despite Sharon's refusal to dine with him, he could tell she had strong feelings for him. Now, he just needed to make them positive feelings.

"You forgot your sunglasses." She took them off to hand to him.

"Keep them for now. I need to look, serious. It's part of my effort to become more deep." He flashed his toothy grin and saw himself out.

"Oh Bother." Sharon went back to work. She looked at the glasses. They were very nice.

A knock on her door.

"Come in!" Sharon said with a sigh.

"We got everything to the ADA. I just saw that Callahan guy in the hallway. Was he here for a follow-up?" Flynn had a smirk on his face.

"Do you want to go to sensitivity training because that's exactly where you'll end up if you try to insert yourself in my personal life?"

"He's in your personal life! Did he give you those shades? Big roller!" Those are like $1300 sunglasses. Flynn saw them on this show his daughter likes to watch.

"I think we're done here, Lieutenant."

Flynn left with a grin. This was gonna get really interesting.


	7. G

G is for generous

Sharon volunteered at the women's shelter for many years. She had a lot of experience from her cases, and she used it to help others. For example, many women didn't realize that their abusive exes could track them using their cell phones. If they had a shared plan, and their abuser owned the contract, then he could track the phone remotely, and there would be no warning sent to the woman. Women would flee, find a new "safe" place to live or stay temporarily and then be shocked to see their exes pounding on the door, sometimes coming armed. Now, the shelter would take the phones upon arrival, issuing a new phone transferring which ever numbers they needed. Their old phones would get taken back to the store where they could be sold, the proceeds being used to buy new, albeit cheaper phones, allowing more women to have a safe lifeline to their loved ones.

Thanks to Sharon, they also kept better documentation, photographing injuries, medical reports and records, witness statements. This was helpful in court when the victim couldn't or would not testify. Andrea had helped Sharon understand the exceptions to the ban on hearsay evidence, and the shelter would keep these exceptions in mind as they collected evidence, knowing that victims were often reluctant to take the stand or in the worst cases, had memory loss from the abuse and could not testify as to how they got injured.

Today, Sharon brought toys for the children who were in the shelter with their mothers. Leaving everything behind was never easy, especially for the little ones. Sharon brought bears, books that would read themselves, toy trucks, dolls. She had been collecting them at the precinct and now it was time to deliver. The shelter was facing hard times. Their budget was cut due to a bill that expired in Congress, and the state couldn't afford to make up the difference. When it came to either helping families escape or buying toys for the kids, the toys had to go first, and if things didn't get better soon, their primary function would be in jeopardy.

They needed a new way to fundraise and fast.

Alistair was playing mini-golf with his friends, drunk of course, and after one antic too many, his friends got sent to sober up. He decided to walk around for a while, whistling to himself, skipping about drunkenly as he explored this side of town. He was somewhere new, away from Beverly Hills or Hollywood or anywhere he would normally go. He saw mothers trying to gather their rowdy children, teenagers on skateboards, many people walking briskly, slowly, trying to get away or in a daze. He saw, who else, but one Sharon Raydor leaving an unmarked building. She walked to her car, unaware that she was being followed.

"Why hello Captain!" He said rather loudly, clearly intoxicated. "A lovely day for a stroll, eh?"

"What are you doing here?"

"I just got done playing mini-golf. I could ask you the same question. Do you always stumble out of unmarked buildings in the middle of the afternoon? Is that like a secret club or something?"

"Not that it's any of your business, but I was volunteering at the women's shelter."

"Isn't that something like college kids do to pad their resume?" Alistair had never been a volunteer before. He just assumed it was for those who didn't have jobs waiting for them when they got out of school.

"It's also for people who care about those less fortunate than they are."

"I care about people too."

"When's the last time you helped anyone?" Sharon didn't know why she asked this. Maybe morbid curiosity.

"I threw a birthday party for my friend Chris last month. He had been in a rut since his last girlfriend dumped him, but this party was so popping..."

"There's more to life than popping parties, Mr. Callahan. Now if you'll excuse me..." Sharon walked off, annoyed as usual with Mr. Callahan. When she was irritated, she had away of walking that emphasized her behind. Alistair had taken notice."

He eventually got home, and went back to yesterday's paper. I can be generous, he thought. He called Planned Parenthood and made a donation over the phone. "Hello. I'd like to make a donation. $25,000. No this isn't a hoax. Alistair Callahan. A-L-I-S-T-A-I-R."

That'll show her. It was a couple of weeks later, when the two crossed paths again.

"Hello, my Captain."

"What do you want now?"

"Who said I wanted anything? Well, since you asked, do you want to go to dinner with me?"

"No!"

"Why not."

"Haven't I already told you?"

"I'm a changed man."

"How have you changed? The last time I saw you, you were plastered."

"I was not, a little tipsy, but most certainly not plastered. After I talked to you, I went home and made a donation to Planned Parenthood. I can be generous too."

"That's lovely, Mr. Callahan. Now, if you don't mind..."

"That's it. You said I didn't know anything about helping people."

"You do know how to throw money at things."

"Money is helpful."

"Yes it is, but there's more to life than just throwing down a check and expecting to get what you want."

Mr. Callahan had a stunned look on his face. What was with this woman? She says he's not generous and then when he is, she says it was about the money? How else does he help people?

"I'll be going, now." Sharon went on her way. This guy didn't give up. He thinks if he keeps throwing around his money, I'll go home with him.

Alistair walked to Astor Martin and got behind the wheel; he drove around for a while, no where in particular, but he needed to clear his head. He didn't get Sharon.

He got home and started to make dinner. He poached some scallops in butter and made noodles to go with it when his phone rang.

"Hello? Hey Dad, what's going on?" His father didn't call very often. He spent most of his time at work. He was a workaholic, work, work work, as long as he had air in his lungs.

"Are you ever going to find someone before I'm dead?"

"What?"

"I'm old as all hell, and you've been messing around too long. If you don't settle down some time, you'll be all alone."

Alistair sighed. This conversation again. He didn't know what to say. "Well, actually I did meet someone." Which was true, well kind of.

"Great, what's her name?"

"Her name is Sharon." Again, not lying yet.

"When do I get to meet here?"

"There's just one catch."

"What?"

"She keeps turning me down." May as well come out with it.

"How many times have you asked?"

"Twice."

"Oh that's nothing. I had to ask your mother like six times before she'd agree to go to dinner with me. Hell I proposed to her 3 times before she finally said yes."

"Really?" Alistair had never seen anything other than affection between his parents. He didn't realize his mother had been so hard to get.

"I knew she was the one, and she was sure that I was not. I just had to be a bit patient, and hope for some good luck. Keep trying, and hopefully get it together before I die. I didn't raise no quitter now."

"No, you didn't Dad."

The fight was back in Alistair. He didn't know how to show Sharon that he could be generous without spending money, but he'd figure it out.


	8. H

H is for humble

Alistair racked his brain trying to figure out how to impress Sharon. She didn't seem to care about money, copious amounts of booze, fancy dinners, cars, what was left. To Alistair, charity events meant throwing down a check, getting drunk, eating. Well, she spends time at the shelter? Maybe I should too. Alistair made a phone call about volunteering. He got a woman named Miranda, and he said he'd be in on Tuesday. When he got there, it was very cold feeling: no sign (for obvious reason) but the inside was barren. They did not have any money to spare, but if they did, it should go to a fresh coat of paint, new floors, maybe some art to spruce up the place. It must be hard enough to leave everything behind, but to escape to a place that feels kind of like a holding cell, doesn't make it any easier.

His face must have set it all. "We have budget constraints," Miranda offered. He smiled weakly and got a tour of the place. Volunteers would do a variety of things, help prepare food, sort paperwork, play with the kids, solicit donations. "How do you guys get funding?"

"We rely on grants, federal money and state money, which are both drying up in this economy, sometimes churches and other charities help us out."

Alistair thought it was odd that they had little corporate presence. Maybe that's what they needed to stay afloat. A little girl ran out and cried, "Don't take me." She tried to hide behind Alistair.

A nurse came out. "Lucy, we need to finish your exam." Now that she was closer, Alistair could see the bruises on her arms. He was about to puke. _What kind of monster did this to her?_ The girl's mom came out and scooped her in her arms. She didn't look any better.

Alistair told Miranda that he wanted to help with fundraising, and that he had some ideas.

Sharon was always one to do what she thought was right, but never one for the spotlight. Ever since Jackson decided drinking and gambling was better than raising children or being a husband, Sharon had to be strong, for herself and for her kids. She often did her work where no one was watching her, in FID, in the shelter, afraid that the world would see how fragile she was.

Her phone rings.

"Hello. Hi Kelly."

"Let me guess. Home alone. Do you ever go out?"

"I was out just last weekend."

"The women's shelter doesn't count!"

"Why not? I was being social too."

"Why can't you do something for yourself? If you weren't doing everything for us, it was work or the shelter, can't you just have fun."

"Life isn't just fun and games you know."

"How do you know? Have you ever tried it?"

"Who are you? Alistair."

"Who's Alistair?"

"Mr. Callahan is this witness from a case, well he didn't actually see anything, but he just won't give up."

"Give up what?"

"Asking me out. He wants to take me to some fancy dinner and I'm sure he has less innocent ideas than that."

"Is he cute?"

"Kelly! And yes he is, but that's not the po..."

"Why not say yes?" Kelly was excited. Her Mom finally finding someone, finally having fun.

"Because he's a playboy, and he's too young and immature."

"So a young, I'm guessing wealthy, attractive man is into you and you're not even thinking about it."

"It takes more than looks and money to impress me."

"What else do you want? A sign from God."

"Kelly! I want someone thoughtful and compassionate and trustworthy."

"He could be all those things. You won't know until you try."

"Good night Kelly."

"Think about it Mom."


	9. I

I is for innovative

* * *

Alistair had just the idea for helping the shelter. Their biggest problem was that their income fluctuated so quickly. One day they have a grant or government funds and the next day they don't. If they could get a couple of big corporate donations, then they could be secure for a long time. The corporations could write it off as a tax deduction, and everyone was a winner. Now to figure out who to call and what to say.

Alistair thought, what does the shelter need? Lots of cell phones, he saw a lack of computers. The health center there was shabby, and the interior could really use a makeover. Lots of companies have either overstocked products or models that just don't sell. He needed to find a company to donate phones, one for computers, a manufacturer might be willing to part with a treadmill, some spin bikes, and a weight set, and students at an art school could probably be talked into painting the place. He had many calls to make. He started with friends and friends of friends, and soon, he had everything he sought out and some things he hadn't even thought of, an offer to upgrade their security system, tech geniuses offering to do some job-training, chefs volunteering to do cooking lessons, people offering resume-building workshops, and makeovers for interviews. As it turned out, when he took the time to talk to people and really listen, they had interesting things to say.

He came back to the shelter, telling them about all of the donations companies and people were willing to make. Miranda was stunned. He had gotten them more things in a week then they expected to have all year. They had a board meeting right away to figure out how to implement all of this. This was a very exciting time. The women's shelter was getting thrust into the 21st Century.

When Sharon came in to bring more toys the following month, she was surprised at what she saw. There was artwork on the wall, which had clearly been painted recently. There was a computer at the front desk that didn't look like it was from 1999. It smelled like something fantastic was going on in the kitchen. "What on Earth?"

"Oh isn't it wonderful?" Miranda was giddy. "We have computers, like many, for the women, iPads that the kids can use for educational programs, new gym equipment. We even had our computer science skills workshop last week. It was a big success. They taught both job skills and cyber security. We have a resume building workshop next week."

"You all didn't have any money last month." Sharon spoke slowly, mainly trying to process it all in her head.

"I know, but we have corporate sponsors now: Acer, Rogue Fitness, Google, Whole Foods."

"That's great."

"And we have some law students coming in from UCLA to do pro bono work."

"What caused the turn around?"

"We got a new volunteer, and he reached out to some companies, and it just took off. Well, don't just stand there with those toys. We have some kids to give them too."

Sharon got back to work. As she walked around, she was just taken away by how this place had livened up. She could see it on the women's faces too. They were typing away, working on resumes, looking for housing. There was just so much hope in the room."

After a pleasant afternoon, Sharon got home and was about to start cooking herself dinner. Her doorbell rang. She went to open it and there was a UPS delivery guy at her door.

"Sign please."

She signed and then he was out. She opened the box and was surprised to find it was a new iPad. "Who could have sent me this?"

She turned it on and it came with a gift card. "To Sharon: I hope this finds you well. As I get myself to work, it only seemed appropriate that you get to play. Alistair."

"Oh that man!" She couldn't help but smile. It was shiny. She set it up and then logged on. Recommended apps included Skype and Angry Birds. She started with Skype. Her daughter had an account. She tried messaging her. "Hi, Honey."

Kelly was on her laptop when she saw a message from ; since, when could her mother Skype?

"Hi Mom!"

"Hi Kelly. How are you doing?"

"Is that an iPad you're holding?"

"It is."

"You splurged on technology." It took forever to convince her to buy a laptop and now she had a shiny, new iPad.

"It was a present."

"From Alistair?"

She sighed. "Yes, from Mr. Callahan."

"Now don't sound too excited."

"He can't just buy my affections."

"Why not?"

"It's complicated."

"Have you tried Angry Birds? It's fun."

"I don't believe in fun," Sharon said as she stuck out her tongue.

"Well, I hope you enjoy your new toy, and maybe you should try dating this guy. He sounds like a catch."

"Because he spends money on me."

"Yes. You've been taking care of people for too long, Mom. Why not let someone take care of you."

"Bye Kelly."

"Bye Mom."

Sharon did not want to be taken care of. She didn't want to be dependent on any man. Now time for Angry Birds.


	10. J

J is for jealous

Alexis Callahan came to LA to visit her brother, well she came to go to a big party, but her brother meant free housing while she was there. They went to the mall, Alexis of course needing a new outfit for the party because nothing she brought suited her mood that day. Well, she got several outfits and would commit to one later, and she got a few pairs of shoes not knowing which outfit she needed to match. Before you knew it, her arms and his were full of her stuff, and they were on their way to the car.

Sharon went to the mall, looking for a dress for next month. It was going to be her birthday, and her kids were coming into town and they were all going out somewhere nice, the exact location a surprise to her, but she didn't see anything that was appropriate, plunging necklines or way too short bodices. She was going out with her children not to a street corner. She was on her way to her car, when she saw a moving block of bags. She couldn't see the faces, but she could hear the voices. Of course, one of them was Mr. Callahan, and the other was a young female laughing. He must have found a new flame. Now, finally, he can leave me be. Sharon told herself this was good news, but she was in a terrible mood afterwards. She drove off real fast and was oversensitive for the rest of the day.

Amy and Alistair went to lunch at the Four Seasons after her shopping spree, and then he took her to the house. Eventually, she figured out an outfit to wear and she was off.

The next day, Sharon was still in a snappy mood. She got another case, and everything her team said got construed the wrong way. They could tell that something was off and even Provenza stayed in line, well as well as he can. The Captain was in such a bad mood, she couldn't even tell she was in a bad mood. Her world was normal, and everyone else was helter skelter. Sharon got home from work, not ready to confront what was obviously bothering her. She opted for a glass of wine, some cookies and The Thin Man.

Sharon eased up on her team throughout the week, but she still felt crummy. She decided to stop feeling sorry for herself and head over to the shelter. She didn't have any toys, but she could at least spend some time with the kids and give their mother a break. "When she got there, she saw Alistair of all people with that woman again. Sharon was so irked, she turned around and went home. Two things became clear to her; One, Alistair must have been the new volunteer that came at the shelter. Two, he would do anything to piss her off. She thought about the wine, but she didn't want it to be a new habit. She got on her iPad and started to play Angry Birds when a Skype message appeared. "Chat with Asta" A picture of the familiar terrier was the profile picture. Assuming it was her son trying to be cute, she accepted. "Hey Sharon."

Of course, it was Alistair.

"You left before I could introduce you to my sister."

"Your sister?" she choked out. Sharon felt like a big dummy.

"Yeah. She's visiting from New York. You didn't see the family resemblance?"

Sharon hadn't looked at her really. She started to blush.

"Were you jealous?"

"No!" she lied, a little more emphatically than she meant to.

"You were. Don't worry, you're the only apple of my eye"

"Oh hush." Sharon was right back to her normal self.

Alistair was enjoying this. "Well, if you had accepted my dinner invitation, you would have known about her and you wouldn't have had to get so jealous. Although, I like you jealous."

"You need to stop."

"You should come to dinner with me on Friday."

"I don't know." Sharon wasn't sure what she was getting herself into. "You might be disappointed with the outcome."

"Well, I'll just go expecting dinner. Anything else is just a fringe benefit."

Sharon rolled her eyes. "Good night Mr. Callahan."

_She didn't say no, _Alistair thought as he closed is screen. Now, it's time to start planning a date. He wanted to do something Sharon would really enjoy, which meant his boiler plate date night: 5 star restaurant with a bottle of extravagant wine, limo service back to his place for more wine and drunken sex would not suffice. How to plan a special evening for a woman who doesn't care how much money he spends? He needed to figure out something that would be special to her.


	11. K

K is for Karma

At a young age, Alistair's father taught him that there were consequences to his actions, and that this was the basis for karma. Karma isn't there to reward the good or punish the bad; it was just the natural result of the choices that you make.

Sharon was totally distracted at work the next day. People had to say things to her twice. She was always somewhere else. Now, her team was baffled. First, she was a cranky bitch, even for her, then she was almost normal, like she wanted to apologize, but she didn't want to even acknowledge her weird behavior or say what was causing it, and now she was freaking loopy. "If she wasn't so old, I'd say it was menopause," said Provenza.

"Maybe she's sick," suggested Sanchez.

"Maybe it's a family crisis," added Tao.

"Maybe someone, like Flynn, should ask her," said Sykes.

"Why me? She likes you."

"And I want to keep it that way. You're always in trouble anyway. What difference does it make?"

Flynn shook his head. He had a point. He sighed and knocked on her door.

"Come in!"

"Hey, Captain, are you feeling alright?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Now her voice was almost normal.

"Well, you seem to have gone through a lot of moods this week, and we were getting kind of worried about you."

"You all were worried about the Wicked Witch."

"No one's called you that in years, well at least not here."

"Thanks, Lieutenant, but I am just fine."

"Is it about a guy?"

"Goodbye Flynn."

"Tell Alistair I said hi."

"OUT FLYNN!"

The squad could hear her yelling at the door.

"She sounds fine to me," said Provenza with a laugh. "Andy on the other hand …."

Friday rolled around. Sharon got a message on her iPad. "I'm looking forward to seeing you tonight. Wear something comfortable" Alistair left an address for her to meet him at and a time.

"It hardly sounded like he was going to take her to a posh restaurant." Just what was this guy planning?

The team went about her day, just securing their confession, when Sharon needed to get home to change.

"Captain, we still have a deal to work out." Provenza called after her.

"I'm sure you all and the DA can handle it without me. Good night Lieutenant."

"Maybe she isn't alright," Provenza mumbled, out of earshot.

Sharon got home, took a shower and put on stretchy jeans, a tank top and wore a sweater over it in case she got chilly. She put on her makeup and then headed out.

When she got there, she realized it was just a parking lot. His car was there, and he got out of the driver seat. "Sharon, I'm glad you came out."

She blushed. He was wearing a leather jacket, a white under shirt, jeans and boots. He had this James Dean look about him, very dreamy. "Shall we?"

She got in his car, still unsure of where they were going.

"I think you'll like this," he said as he put the car in drive. Frank Sinatra began to play in the car as he drove out of the city. They left behind the flashing lights and the glamour, the only world he knew when they first crossed paths. They made small talk as they drove. Sharon told him about her latest case, a murdered insurance agent, and how it had been the result of a big scam that he helped orchestrate. About an hour later, they found themselves out of the city and in the parking lot of a recreational area. He brought her out for a night hike. There was still light out and they had a couple of hours left. He opened the trunk and revealed a picnic basket and a duffle bag. He grabbed the basket and slung the duffle back across his body.

Sharon couldn't have imagined him outdoors, in casual clothes, and now, without his sunglasses. Sharon lead the way on the hike. They got to a nice flat spot, overlooking the hills and the water and the sun was going to set soon. "This is really beautiful," Sharon was happy to be away from the bright lights and the dead bodies, well at least for one evening. They set up shop. The blankets were set down and the goodies in the basket were unveiled: watermelon and feta salad, grilled cheese with bacon and caramelized onion and two red velvet cupcakes for dinner, a bottle of wine (a small one), some water and plenty of napkins. They sat down and began their meal.

"This is lovely. Where did you get it?"

"My kitchen."

"You made this?" Sharon was impressed. It looked fantastic, everything fresh and carefully prepared.

"I bought the cupcakes, but I made the rest." _I can make stuff when I try._

Sharon started with the salad. The mix of sweet and salty was very enjoyable. Next, she tried her sandwich, more sweet and salty and the sharpness of the gouda was just right. Alistair poured the wine. He wanted to keep the date simple, but he couldn't resist bringing his favorite bottle. He usually just ordered Merlot on dates because it was easy to drink a lot of it. His favorite, as it turned out, was a pinot noir. His mother took the family to vineyards around the world to taste their wine. He had his first glass at 11 and first tour at 13. They had just come back from Portugal before her diagnosis. That trip was the fondest memory he had of her, when she was carefree and had all the time in the world.

Sharon carefully took a sip, not wanting to get too drunk. A pleasant hum crossed her lips as she tasted. The texture was silky, the taste dry and a little fruity but mostly earthy. It was elegant and quite nice. "This wine is lovely."

"It's my favorite," he said with a smile. "I first found it when I was in Burgundy. Also, I figured you would appreciate pinot noir. It's very lovely but very difficult to grow and to make. It likes to push back. They used to say God made Cabernet and the Devil made Pinot Noir."

Sharon laughed at that. Did this mean she was the devil? She had some colleagues who would agree.

After their meal, they spent some time stargazing. The moon was out, and the stars were bright. Alistair started pointing out constellations. Sharon rested her head on his shoulder. It was nice to just lie down and enjoy the weather, the sky, and the romantic feeling that was hanging in the air. When it started to get chilly, they decided to close shop and head out. Using headlamps, they made their way down the trail and back to the car. Alistair drove them to his house. Sharon didn't object. She was not in a condition to drive at this point. She wasn't hammered, not even close, but she was not at her most attentive and getting a DUI would not be a good way to end her date. Of course, Alistair had a huge house, even the driveway was huge. Alistair pulled up to the front door and led her inside. They went to the kitchen, which was very nice and had its own bar, fully stocked with wine and liquor. "Would you like a drink?"

"Water please." He poured some ice, then water and a squeeze of lemon. He made himself a Manhattan.

Here comes the awkward part of the night. They both had drinks in hand, looking at the other, unsure of how this night would go. He pushed an errant lock of hair out of her eyes, the same very eyes that had him at hello. He started to close the distance between them, but he held back. If this was going to happen, Sharon was going to have to make a move. Sharon had no idea what she was doing, why she was in this man's house, how she found herself to be dating one of the most notorious playboys in the city, but right in front of her was a man that few people ever saw, simple, unguarded, and …. Sharon grabbed his undershirt and kissed him, pulling him towards her. Alistair almost lost his balance, not prepared for such a forceful move. Sharon was unpredictable, very hard to handle, but incredibly romantic. His hands found her waist and started to gently rub the small of her back. She had him pinned to his bar, wanting needing to take control. Her tongue danced around his as traces of lemon and rye entered her mouth. Her legs moved to either side of his right leg, increasing the contact as she leaned forward. His hands just managed to find her behind before they heard a glass rattling.

The lustful moment broken, they turned to see an embarrassed woman trying to pour herself a drink. "Sharon, this is my sister, Alexis," he said, a bit curtly.

"Nice to meet you," Sharon forced out of her mouth. Well, awkward...

"Sorry. I thought I could be stealthy, but I guess not." Alexis hurried up her rum and coke and moseyed on upstairs.

The two looked at each other. Sharon's senses were beginning to come back. This was too fast, she thought. She wasn't ready to spend the night with him, although her hormones wanted that very much. Alistair could tell the mood had changed. He didn't want her to go, but he didn't want to pressure her either. "How about I get one of the guest rooms ready for you and tomorrow, I'll take you to your car."

"You don't mi..." He silenced her with a kiss.

"No need to rush. We have plenty of time."

Sharon went into the guest room and found a hershey kiss waiting on her pillow. After popping the chocolate into her mouth, she closed her eyes and had very pleasant dreams.

Alistair retreated to his bed. He had a great time, but he wished the night was still going. This is what he gets for inviting his sister for a whole week. Well, that's karma.


	12. L

L is for look

* * *

Sharon woke up to the smell of pancakes. She came downstairs to see Alistair at the stove and Alexis eating away. There was a mountain of bacon on the table as well as orange juice. "Grab a plate," he said as he flipped over the pancake. "Before Lexi eats it all."

"You shut up!" Alexis couldn't help it if she, unlike most of the socialites in LA, actually ate proper meals. She couldn't believe the women at the party she went to last week, eat ONE cube of cheese, munching on a Tic Tac. It was quite ridiculous. She washed down her pancake with a screwdriver.

The coffee maker made a beeping sound. Alistair took the pot out and set it on the table. "I have cream, sugar, skim milk, and well of course alcohol, but it's early. Lexi on the other hand..."

"Piss off. I'm on vacation."

Sharon smiled and made herself a plate. She waited until Alistair was done cooking, and they ate together. These pancakes were tasty. Sharon didn't make them much, now that the kids were gone. She usually just had yogurt and granola or eggs. These pancakes had a little lemon and ginger and some other spice that she couldn't place, which turned out to be coriander. The bacon was very good. It was clearly not the standard store bought variety. It was uncured, thick-cut, pecan-smoked, and out of this world. "Do you have a busy day ahead of you?" Sharon asked him.

"Busy being a turkey," Alexis sassed.

"Well, at least this turkey has a job."

"I'm in school," Alexis argued.

"You're always in school. I wanna be a social worker. I want to go to med school. I want to go to business school. I want to avoid working, forever." Alistair did a pretty good impression of his sister's higher pitched voice.

"Yeah yeah yeah!"

Sharon laughed. The siblings were quite silly. After breakfast, Sharon took care of the plates over Alistair's objections, and the duo headed out to her car. She gave him a quick kiss goodbye and headed home. Alistair stood there for a moment, fixated on the way she looked at him, the twinkle she had in her mystical eyes. He smiled to himself and headed to work.

Sharon got to work late that day. They didn't have a case, just paperwork to fill out. When she got to the murder room, Flynn and Sanchez were playing darts. Tao was typing way at his computer, Provenza in front of his paper, and Sykes was playing Words with Friends. "Lady and gentlemen," Sharon bellowed as she stepped inside.

They all turned and looked at her, BUSTED.

All it took was a stern look from her, and her squad was back in line. She smiled to herself as she got back to her office.

She had an expense report to write. Chief Pope wanted them saving money wherever possible, so she had to keep a detailed record of the team's expenses and show how they were saving money from past years. She couldn't actually understand Chief Johnson's past expense reports, so comparing them would be a challenge.. Sharon started to write. This past case had been pretty cheap. The most expensive part was the search for the gun, they had some uniforms help to expedite the process. Sharon started to make a list of what expenses they had occurred when her pen ran out of ink. "Piece of junk," she muttered as she looked for another pen. When she got her drawer open, she didn't see a pen, but rather a pair of sunglasses. "Oh These." Sharon had forgotten about them. She recalled how goofy she thought Alistair looked, wearing them indoors. For a bit of fun, Sharon put them on and looked in her mirror. "These do look good on me," Sharon agreed, not that she would ever spend so much for a pair of sunglasses.

Someone knocked on her door.

"Come in," Sharon called out as she took the glasses off.

"Yes Lieutenant."

Provenza entered her lair. She actually looked happy. Lou was suspicious. "We have everything squared away for the Kramer case. The district attorney took what she wanted yesterday, and the FBI is coming for the evidence today. Is there anything else for us to do?"

"Well, actually there is." She followed Provenza out of her office and into the main room.

"So, I have to make an expense report and I need to compare it to Major Crimes' past expense reports, to show how much money we're saving, but I have having a bit of trouble deciphering what Chief Johnson submitted in the past..."

Flynn started snickering. Sanchez was trying not to crack up, not very successfully, and Tao just started shaking his head.

"Gentlemen, might I ask what is so funny?"

Flynn finally got himself together. "Well, Captain, Chief Johnson didn't really do her expense reports."

"What do you mean? Chief Pope has been requiring them for …."

"She would just make it up," Flynn said very quickly, not taking time to breathe.

Sharon had a stupefied look on her face. "Make it up," she said slowly, trying to comprehend.

"She would just take some receipts, stuck them in a folder, type up some nonsense numbers and turn it in."

Sanchez was in full on hysterics now.

"Detective Sanchez," the Captain called, putting and end to his gigglefest.

"Sorry, Captain, it's just I saw her trying to do an expense report one year, and it was hilarious. She maybe spent 5 minutes on a given annual report. She would open an excel spreadsheet, actually, she'd have Tao do it, make up some numbers, print it out and call it a day. Then she would eat a candy bar and go home."

"How, am I supposed to show our progress if the past data is made up?" She wasn't that surprised, but really, she just made it up.

"Well, not to state the obvious, Captain," Flynn started. "You could just make it up."

Sanchez started laughing all over again.

"I will not make it up, Lieutenant."

Tao elaborated. "We could estimate how much we spent in the past and compare it to our current numbers. It won't be perfect, but it would be something."

Sharon shook her head. "An estimate it is," and now Captain Raydor would be making it up.

"I can take care of it Captain. I'm good with numbers," Tao offered.

"Could you?" What a relief.

"Not a problem."

She retreated back to her office.

"I can do it for you, Captain. Will you say I'm the best?" Provenza mocked, shooting Tao a dirty look.

"Laugh all you want, but I just bought the Captain's good favor, and all I have to do is make up some numbers. It will take like 20 minutes."

Flynn snickered. Tao had a point. Given the Captain's changing moods, getting in her favor was a wise move. He looked through the glass into the Captain's office. She looked quite happy as she sat at her desk, typing away. It was a good look for her.

* * *

Across town, Alistair was in a board meeting, arguing with a colleague.

"You had no right, going around general counsel," his colleague, Dan Witten, scolded. "You exposed the company to a great liability."

"I made the company over $20,000,000, and I went around general counsel, because they say no to everything, arbitrarily. Their stalling would have cost us millions." Their company owned multiple television networks. Alistair had arranged a deal where a Calvin Klein would make clothes and accessories based on the wardrobe of their shows' most popular characters and would sell them, allowing the two to split the profits. Since general counsel often says no to everything, they would have had to spend months getting their approval, missing out on last year's holiday season. Alistair and Calvin made their deal with a handshake and proceeded without consulting the lawyers, getting the job done quickly and efficiently. It was a huge success and to further the partnership, Calvin Klein would be designing the wardrobe for certain shows. When general counsel found out they had been avoided and that there was no written contract, they flipped out, leading to this board meeting.

"What Mr. Callahan did was reckless, irresponsible, illegal, and …."

"Now, calm down," the elder Mr. Callahan spoke. He was not thrilled with how his son handled this project, but he did have to admit it was a success. "In hindsight, I'm sure my son wishes he had handled this differently."

_No I don't _Alistair thought, until he saw his father's stare. Then, a look of remorse was on his face.

"However, he does have a point. It is inordinately difficult to work with general counsel and this must change. If they were willing to come up with some guidelines, so that projects could be pre-approved, I'm sure we could save a lot of hassle on both sides."

The rest of the meeting was about usual business. As the other board members started to leave the room, Mr. Callahan asked his son to stay behind.

"Alistair, look at me."

He looked at his father, unsure of where this was going.

"I'm not getting any younger. I need to know that when my time comes that you will be ready to take over, which means, you have to learn to work with other people. If you go off on your own all the time, you'll be left alone, when you need help the most."

"I know, Dad. I won't do it again."

"Hell, I don't care if you talk to general counsel or not. All I'm saying is, you need to make some friends in the company. You can't be a lone ranger."

"Yes, Dad."

"No, go one and get out of here. Life is for living, not staying inside an office all day." Alistair found it surprising his father said that, seeing as he is a bonafide workaholic. Not wanting to disobey an elder, Alistair took his stuff and got out of there. As he drove, Nat King Cole's L.O.V.E. was playing.


	13. M

Author's note: I want to thank you for reading, and for the feedback, I find it helpful.

M is for Memories

* * *

Sharon woke up early this morning. She made herself some tea and sat on her couch. She looked up and saw a picture of her with her two children. She got up and picked up the picture frame. Kelly was 10 in the photo, her brother 8 and Kelly had just performed at her dance recital. Sharon thought about all of wonderful memories she had with them, from their first steps to their graduations. It was a bittersweet feeling because with the good memories of her kids came the terrible memories of their marriage. Soon, her mind shifted to the fights, the drinking, the gambling, the floozies, the nights where she cried alone, where her kids asked her when their father was coming back. As much as she loved her kids, they were an obvious reminder of Jackson, and the hole in her heart that he left when he took off. Sharon put down the picture frame and went back to her tea.

Sharon took a shower and got dressed ready to head to her office when she got a phone call. "Yes, Lieutenant, I'll be there in 20. Bye." Another murder, this one appeared to be a home break in.

Sharon got to the crime scene, yellow tape already up, Provenza waiting for her outside while the rest of the squad was in the house. "Just so you know Captain, this guy was a teacher at the school where Pope's kids go, so expect to hear from him."

"Thank you, Lieutenant. Shall we?"

"After you."

"The downstairs has been trashed, either it was a terrible fight or the killer was looking for something," Tao told the Captain as she entered the house.

The table was overturned, drawers pulled out, chairs broken. It looked like a total disaster.

"It looks like the killer used this wine bottle, Captain." Sanchez told her, pointing to the cracked bottle that appeared to have dried blood on it. The victim, Elijah Hirschberg, had been bludgeoned in the back of the head about 9-10PM the night before.

Chief Taylor arrived at the scene, dealing with a panicky Chief Pope on the phone. "Should I be keeping my kids out of school? Should I have them lock down the school?"

"For all we know, this was a burglary gone bad. Let's give them a chance to figure out what happened. If there is any reason to suggest that the school is involved in this, you will be the first to know."

Taylor hung up. As he approached the house, Provenza met him at the door to brief him and to buy the Captain some time.

Sharon looked at the broken glass from the window. Buzz videoed it. "Do you think the killer broke in here?"

"No, I don't. First of all, most of the glass is outside the window. Second of all, the glass on the inside of the window is imbedded in this broken chair. I wonder if the killer broke the window afterwards and used the chair to do it."

"So there was no break in."

"What do you mean no break in?," Taylor started, before Captain Raydor could answer Buzz."

"Some of the evidence suggests that this break in was staged. Perhaps the victim knew his killer, invited him inside, got killed and then the killer trashed the house afterwards."

When they got back to the murder room, Sharon explained her trouble with the break in theory. "Who breaks into a house without a weapon? The killer used a wine bottle, an unusual weapon for a burglar. The glass was consistent with the window being broken from the inside. There are no clear signs of forced entry and given the victim's salary and assets, there was probably not much to take from the house. Also the victim was hit on the back of the head? Why would he turn his back on the burglar if he interrupted the robbery. I think it is more likely that he welcomed the killer into his house, he may have even offered the wine and when he went to get something, he was hit over the head and killed."

The UPS driver was the one who called the police. He had a package that needed to be signed for. Mr. Peters' car was in the driveway, so the driver assumed he was home. When he rang the bell, there was no answer and when he looked inside, he saw the trashed house. A uniform came by to do a wellness check, entered the house and discovered the victim had been murdered.

The driver was put in interview one, the uniform in interview two. Neither of them had remembered anything particularly useful. The driver said Mr. Peters was a normal guy. He got a package that required a signature on the third week of every month. The police took the package, wondering if it would shed any light on why the victim was killed. It was only blood pressure medication, not exactly a motive for murder.

Sharon had little to report to the Chief, other than it looked like a staged robbery. Flynn and Provenza canvassed the neighborhood, but no one saw or heard anything suspicious. The next step would be to interview his colleagues, see if they knew anything about his personal affairs or any trouble he might have had.

* * *

After work, Sharon went home and promptly changed into evening attire, a simple black dress with matching pumps. She brought a black and white shawl in case it got chilly. She had plans with Alistair and she didn't want to be late. She was just getting her purse together when her doorbell rang.

She went to open it, and it was Alistair, wearing a green dress shirt with vertical pinstripes, black slacks and black shoes, in his hand was one red rose. She looked at him, his handsome features getting imprinted into her mind. "Where are my manners? Come in." He followed her inside and set the rose into a cup with some water.

"I would have gotten a bouquet, but I didn't want it to be too flashy," he ribbed.

Sharon stuck out her tongue at him as she finished getting ready. The duo was off. Alistair drove and he drove fast.

Normally, there would be a lot of traffic at this hour, but it seemed as if the cars knew to be out of Alistair's way. He was going to get to make this reservation hell or high water.

Alistair pulled into the parking lot and stopped. "You look lovely," he told her.

"You're just saying that so I'll kiss you."

"Nah. You were going to do that anyway."

She blushed, but he was right. Her lips met his, soft and gentle, she knew how to tease at him. He went to deepen the kiss, but she pulled back. "More of that later," she said. "I'm hungry."

He laughed and they got out of the car, heading for the restaurant.

Alistair took her to a Thai restaurant, Chaokuai. On their first date, she had told him that she liked spicy food, and he wanted to take her somewhere nice without it being over the top. Arm in arm, they walked inside where the hostess had them seated to a table in the back. Alistair requested that part of the restaurant because it was away from the kitchen, so it was quieter. They took their seats, and the waiter presented them with menus.

"Would you like any wine?"

"I shouldn't. I have a case right now, and you never know when something will come up."

"Well, hopefully, nothing comes up tonight. I do not want to share you."

"Jealous, are you?" she teased.

"No, just possessive. You're the jealous one."

"Am not," she playfully scratched his chest her eyes flirting with his.

"Are you ready to order?" The waiter was right there.

Sharon was not.

"Could we have another minute?"

"Of course."

"I don't know if I've ever been to a Thai restaurant that is this authentic before. I don't know what a lot of this stuff is."

"Do you like crab cakes?"

"Yes."

"How about dumplings?"

"Also yes."

"Then I suggest that we share the siu mai (dumplings) and the Thot man pla (fried crab cakes) for starters and a curry for an entree"

"That sounds nice." Sharon started looking at the curries, she decided on kaeng phet (red curry) with chicken. Alistair summoned the waiter. He ordered the starters, Sharon ordered curry and Alistair ordered the roast duck with rice for his entree.

As they waited for their food, Sharon told him about her day.

"Hit on the head with a wine bottle. That sounds like the worst date ever."

Sharon started thinking after he said that. Why was the bottle of wine out? They didn't see any glasses, food, anything else to suggest a date, just the bottle.

The appetizers arrived, and they looked very hot. Sharon waited a minute for the food to cool. She grabbed the chopsticks and took a bite from the siu mai. The filling was pork, and it was very meaty. Alistair cut the crab cakes with a fork and knife, so they could be eaten with chopsticks. He picked up a piece and chewed, nice and crunchy. It came with plum sauce, but Alistair was not a fan of it.

"How are the dumplings?"

"They're very good." Sharon picked up one with her chopsticks and offered it to Alistair. He snagged it with his teeth.

"Mmm! Meat in my mouth!"

Sharon laughed at him.

"What! You nasty girl," finally getting what Sharon found to be funny.

They kept eating and chatting until the appetizers were done. Sharon took a sip of her water. This place was great. The food was delicious, the décor was nice and simple. It wasn't too loud. Alistair poured some tea. It wasn't very good, but it was supposed to be good for you. His facial expression must have said it all.

"You don't like the tea."

"Not so much, but they say it's good for you. It must be, to taste this bad."

Sharon giggled. "It can't be that bad."

He poured her a cup. She took a sip. That wasn't so..., and then she took another. She had the most disgusted look on her face. "That should be outlawed."

Alistair laughed. "I told you, totally nasty."

Sharon took a big gulp of water. "Well that was a taste I'd like to forget." Her eyes managed to catch his and complete distract him from what he was about to say.

The busboy came and cleared their plates breaking the trance and their conversation restarted.

"This restaurant is lovely."

"Isn't it? It's the most authentic food I've had since I was in Bangkok.

Sharon snickered when he said that.

"You have the filthiest mind."

"You have no idea."

"You should go sometime. It's a lot of fun."

"I can't exactly just leave work and go away."

"Why not?"

Before Sharon could answer that, the main dishes arrived. Sharon's curry was very hot. Alistair went straight for his roast duck. The skin was nice and crispy, the meat tender, and it was beautifully seasoned.

"Duck is my favorite."

Sharon took a bite. The flavors were glorious, the chicken nice and delicate. She added some rice. "The curry is very good."

"Would you like to try mine?"

Sharon didn't answer with words. She looked up at him, and Alistair fed her a piece off his fork.

"That is nice. Would you like some curry?"

Alistair took a taste, even though he wasn't the biggest fan of coconut milk, and they continued to dine.

The waiter came and asked if they would like dessert. Sharon and Alistair gave each other a knowing glance. "No thank you."

The check came. Alistair handed over his card.

"You didn't have to," Sharon insisted. She was not a kept woman.

"I know, but I'm so generous that I couldn't help it."

"Jerk," she muttered.

Alistair signed the bill, and they left in his car. He didn't ask her where to; they both knew she was going with him to his house. Alistair was distracted on the drive back. Sharon's skirt kept riding up her thigh, exposing her pale, well-shaped leg, causing all kinds of dirty thoughts to fill his brain.

Eventually, the show ended. He parked in his driveway, and they went inside. Now, it was just the two of them, Alexis back in New York and Alistair put on a pot of tea, one he actually liked. He turned towards Sharon, and they shared a quick embrace, both thinking of the last time they were alone in the kitchen. Two things were clear: the sexual tension was high and neither of them wanted to rush this. Sharon was hesitant about taking things to the next level; it made this very real, and her last serious relationship ended badly, very badly. Alistair was eager, but he could feel Sharon's fear, and he didn't want to drive her away. She was worth waiting for. A moment came, both of them wondering how far this would go.

_Whistle_

The kettle was boiling. Alistair started to brew the tea. He returned to Sharon, taking her small hand in his, rubbing her palm affectionately; she trembled as his lips hit the back of her hand. Her hand squeezed his and he moved closer, closing the gap between them, his lips softly pressing against hers. She could smell his cologne, and the soap he used, and he was intoxicating. Alistair moved very gently, almost frustratingly slowly. If this was going to go any further, Sharon was going to have to make a move. Before she could, Alistair pulled back, resuming his tea making and leaving her flustered. He filled a pitcher with ice and added honey to the lemon tea. He poured the tea into the pitcher.

"You went through all of this for some iced tea." Sharon wasn't sure why she was so amused.

He poured two cups. "It's refreshing." When Alistair was a kid, his mother would always make the iced tea, never from a bottle. The cold and the sweet and the lemon was always the perfect combination on a hot day.

They went into the next room to enjoy the tea. They didn't talk much. A little muttering here and there, but mostly, the two were trying to cool down. Even though the room was at a normal temperature, they were both burning up. Alistair asked her if she wanted some more.

"No," she said, a little more forcefully than she had meant to. "I mean no, thank you." She smiled nervously, her hand grabbing on to his. He looked at her, his eyes trying to read her, the same eyes that shamelessly flirted with her when they first met, the ones that had made her want to slap him, but now they just seemed to cut right into her. She had fallen for him, fast and hard, which was very uncharacteristic of her. She felt like she should be going home before she did something she'd regret. She opened her mouth to speak, but her body just took over. Before she knew what she was doing, she grabbed him and pulled him into a hungry kiss, their lips mashing, her hands roaming, and his hands just finding her waist before she pulled back. What the hell was she thinking? Those eyes caught her again, and she pulled him on top of her to begin a night that both of them would remember forever.


	14. N

N is for Naughty

* * *

Sharon woke up in the middle of the night. She found Alistair's room to be a little chilly. She got up to retrieve the covers that had fallen to the floor, and Alistair could feel her rustling. "What is it?" he muttered, not ready to open his eyes.

"I'm just a little chilly." Sharon pulled the covers over her nude body.

He reached under the covers, pulling her close to him. "I'll warm you up." His arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her back towards his chest. His lips hit her shoulder and neck, his hot breath causing her flesh to shiver. His warm hands started to rub her stomach, which felt especially cold, and she murmured pleasantly as he touched her. He was hoping she was in a mood to be a little naughty, but she promptly fell asleep in his arms, her head resting on his chest.

She woke up again, but this time it was morning. She found herself nice and snug in Alistair's arms and she had no desire to get out of bed, but she needed to get home, shower, change and go to work and if she was going to be on time, she needed to get up soon. She kissed him awake, needing him to release his grip, so she could get up. Also, if he woke up and drove her home, that would be nice. He looked into her eyes, remembering the trance the put him in when he first saw them, and how expressive they were the night before.

"Good morning," he kissed her and rolled on top of her, covering her neck and shoulders in kisses.

"I need to go to work."

"Okay." He kept kissing her.

"Which means I need to go home first and change."

"Uh-huh." Now, he started to rub her back.

"Which means I need you to drive me home, like now, so I'm not late," she used her serious voice, well as best as she could.

"Understood." He looked at her, a devilish look in his eye and he pressed his mouth to hers. Before she could object, he pulled the covers over them.

**Ten minutes later.**

Sharon felt very good. Alistair kissed her on the back of her neck. "Wanna just stay in today?"

"I have to work. I'm already late."

"Can't you just say you're sick?"

"I'm a little old to be playing hooky."

"You're not old and don't you get sick days. You may as well use them."

"You're impossible."

Sharon had a case. She couldn't just stay in bed, no matter how tempting it was. She had to lead her team, find a killer, get a deal, then it could be playtime.

Alistair began to nibble on her ear.

"Stop that."

"I thought you liked it."

"You know I do. I need to work."

He smiled at her, and then he got up. They got dressed, and he drove her home. "You're sure you don't want to get brunch first?"

"Wearing yesterday's clothes and smelling like sex, I think not."

"I see nothing wrong with that."

He got to her condo. He kissed her goodbye and then headed home.

Sharon took her time getting into the shower and getting dressed. She was already really late, why bother to rush at this point.

Her team was surprised she got to work so late, especially when she had a case. Flynn had an inkling as to her whereabouts. The team kept working. In the afternoon, the principal and some of the Elijah's colleagues would be coming in to discuss him. Sanchez and Sykes went to the school to talk to the janitors and other staff. They often observed a lot at schools and people would sometimes forget they were there when they talked. They wanted to have as much information as possible before going into the interviews.

Sharon was at her desk, catching up on e-mails she hadn't answered when Flynn knocked on her door.

"Yes, Come in."

He entered. "The principal is in interview room one. Pope has already called twice."

"Thank you." She took her notepad and got up.

"Did you have a good date last night, or shall I say this morning, too?" Flynn asked her, with a smirk on his face.

Before she could tell him off, they were in front of the squad. She held her tongue, for now.

Flynn knew she'd make him pay for that later, but the look on her face was priceless.

Sanchez stopped her before she could get to the interview room. "As it turned out, our victim had a pretty naughty past time. He was known for sleeping with taken women, the most recent one being a married physics teacher Mrs. Donahue."

Sharon exchanged pleasantries with Principal Warden, and they got to the chase.

"What I need from you, Sir, is what you know about Mr. Hirschberg. The better we can figure him out, the greater our chances are of figuring out who killed him."

"I will help however I can."

"How well did you know him?"

"Well, he was a popular teacher, got good annual reviews from both students and their parents."

"Parents review the teachers as well."

"Well, they meet with them at conferences and such, and we'll ask them to fill out an evaluation card."

"Were there any negative reviews?"

"There's always some, but not much to write home about."

"Did anyone at the school have a personal problem with him?"

"Like?"

"Like a dispute over money, an office romance, a..."

"We prohibit fraternization between coworkers."

"Well, he had a reputation for …."

"For what?"

"For canoodling with women who were already taken."

"Well, I'm shocked. I knew nothing about that." Sharon didn't quite believe him, but she didn't press the issue.

"Was there anyone at the school that he confided in?"

"He and Doug Martin, our PE instructor ate together at lunch sometimes. If that is all, I must be going."

He got up and promptly left the room.

_I wonder if Principal Warden is married?_ Sharon thought as she returned to the murder room. "Let's see if we can get ahold of Mr. Martin; also, let's see which teachers at the school are married, and let's start with the women who resemble Mrs. Donahue. It's probable that he had an aesthetic preference when it came to his affairs."

They started with the yearbook, looking for any teacher who was under 40, light brown hair, on the curvy side, and they started with blue eyes. There were 8 women who fit the profile and 5 of them were married. They scheduled interviews for the next day, being careful not to reveal why they had been asked to come in.

Mr. Martin came in. He was single, and according to him, hadn't had a serious girlfriend in years.

"I'm not sure what my love life has to do with your case."

"Well, you were friends with him. You must know his m.o."

"I beg your pardon." He either didn't know where they were going or was a fibber.

"Dating women who were unavailable. We hear he did that a lot."

Doug turned a bit red. "That was not one of his better attributes. He would be come infatuated with a woman, shower her with attention and then get bored and go on to the next one"

"Is it true? About Mrs. Don..."

"Look, she's a good teacher. Surely, she shouldn't lose her job over."'

"We're not here to take her job. We're trying to figure out who killed him and a lover scorned is often a good reason. Did her husband know..."

"Absolutely not. He would be very careful, use hotels instead of bringing them home. Never saw a woman for too long. Always getting a different cell phone number."

"How long was his typical duration?"

"2-3 months tops. He just started seeing Laura 3 weeks ago."

"Who was before her?"

Doug hesitated. "I don't know if I should..."

Before Sharon could put pressure on him, she got a knock on the door. She stepped out. It was Sykes.

"We just got a call from the school. A student trashed the memorial that had been left for Mr. Hirschberg and when the school resource officer confronted him, there was an altercation."

"The kid knows something. Let's bring him in."

Sharon returned to the interview room.

"Did he ever date a married parent?"

Doug flinched. "You know about that. I told him not to, but he loved to play with fire. He finally got burned."

The Peters came in, angry that their son had been taken into custody and that the school called them instead of the police. "He has rights," the father yelled. When Sharon saw Mrs. Peters, it was all clear. She was in her late 30s, brown hair, blue eyes, ample curves with a tiny waist, just what he liked.

The parents insisted on being in the room with their son. Sharon asked him why he trashed the memorial.

The kid, Eric, claimed he was bored.

"Are you sure it wasn't more personal, like anger or resentment?"

"Why would he have resentment for a dead teacher?" The father yelled.

"I wonder," Sharon said, sarcastically. "Perhaps, your wife could explain it to us?"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Tao sent a picture of Mrs. Peters to the hotels near the school. One of the concierges remembered her being a frequent visiter. The visits stopped about 4 weeks ago, and a private investigator had asked about her. He had come by about four weeks ago. He relayed the information to the Captain.

"You knew Mr. Hirschberg quite well, didn't you?"

"I mean, he was my son's teacher. I tried to be involved in his learning."

"That's why you attended the Parent-Teacher conference, but you went alone, didn't you?"

"My husband had to work. I was able to take the day off."

"But that's not the only time you met him." She looked at the woman, unsure if she wanted to have this conversation in front of her son, much less her husband. Eric looked uncomfortable, like he knew what was coming.

"I don't know what you mean."

Sharon decided for her. "I think it's best if Eric left the room." She had Sanchez escort him out.

"Now, what if we were to tell you that a hotel employee remembered you making frequent visits to a hotel, visits that stopped about a month ago."

"Why would my wife be in a hotel?"

"Visiting her paramour, but you knew that, didn't you Mr. Peters."

"My wife is not having an affair."

"She was, and you knew it because you hired a PI to investigate her. He found out about that hotel and he told you. Is that what happened? You found out where. You figured out who and then …."

"You have no right."

"John," his wife pleaded. "Tell me it isn't true. Tell me that you didn't."

The color drained from his face. He just froze. "I first knew something was wrong when my son's grades were slipping in Hirschberg's class. I asked him what was wrong, and he wouldn't talk to me. I noticed my wife becoming distant at the same time, and when the PI told me that this teacher visited the same hotel that she did, I knew it was all related. I called him, saying that I wanted to discuss my son; he said we could talk before he went out on his date. When she called him, on the phone, I realized he was going to go see Mrs. Donahue. I recognized her voice. I was just so angry. I grabbed the wine bottle he had on the table, and I hit him when he wasn't looking. How dare he impose himself on other people's lives? Ruin their marriages, just to walk away from the mess and start over. I had to stop him."

Sharon sent Mrs. Peters and Eric home. Baldwin came to make a deal with Mr. Peters. Mrs. Donahue confirmed, albeit reluctantly, that she had plans to meet him that night, and she called him, but after their conversation, he never showed up.

Her work day was done. She was able to go home and get some rest. When she got to her condo, she got out her iPad to play Angry Birds. A message came in over Skype; she opened the app. "Hi, Kelly."

"Hey, Mom. Where were you off to yesterday?"

"What do you mean?"

"I wanted to message you on Skype, but you never came online. I called your office but no answer."

"I had a date," Sharon said, nonchalantly

"A what? You. Really. Not with Alistair?" She inquired in a teasing voice.

"Actually, Mr. Callahan and I are seeing each other."

"Do you always call your boyfriends Mr.?"

"He's not my boyfriend," Sharon retorted.

"What time did you get in last night?"

Sharon didn't answer.

"You got in this morning, didn't you? You naughty girl."

"Bye, Kelly."

"I'll have to meet him when I visit."

"Bye, Kelly." Sharon said again, trying to hold back a laugh.


	15. O

O is for obvious.

* * *

Captain Raydor was debriefing Chiefs Taylor and Pope on her most recent case.

"So there's no safety threat at the school," Pope asked for the umpteenth time.

_Obviously not_ Sharon thought as she looked at the clock. What a waste of time! "No, Mr. Hirschberg's murder was of a personal nature. His ex-lover's husband bashed his head in."

"What about the trashed house?"

"We think that was Eric. He must have followed his father to Hirschberg's house, witnessed the attack and then trashed the house."

"Why would he do that?"

"To make it look like a burglary, because he was bored, because he hated the guy. Who knows."

"Did he confess?"

"His mother hired him a lawyer, so no, and we're not that concerned about it. The kid enough to worry about as it is. If that will be all, I should be getting back to the squad. We still have some work to do with the district attorney."

Sharon excused herself and headed out. Pope and Taylor carried on as usual.

When Sharon got there, Tao started his rambling. "SID found a print on the bottle. They were in the process of matching it to Mr. Peter's print card." She smiled and then went to her office.

She was just getting ready to write her report when her office line rang. "Captain Raydor speaking."

"You sound so official on the phone."

"Alistair, why are you calling my office line?"

"I wasn't sure if you would answer your cell phone during business hours."

"This line is for work."

"I'm at work, and so are you, so that counts right."

"What is it?" Sharon sighed. He was so silly sometimes.

"Well, My friends are having a get together at the Braxton, and I was wondering if you would like to join me."

"You want to introduce me to your friends?"

"Yeah!"

"Why would you want to do that?" Sharon was sure that they would be way out of her league.

"Isn't it obvious?"

Not to Sharon it wasn't.

"I want them to meet the lady who takes my breath away."

"Tell her I say hi." Sharon joked.

"Should I pick you up at 9:00?"

"What time does this start?"

"The usual time. 10:00."

This sounded past Sharon's bedtime, but she could sleep in the next day.

"I'll be waiting for you."

"Good."

Sharon heard a knock on her door. She ended her phone call and said "Come in."

"Chief Taylor's giving a press conference," Flynn told her. The look on her face said it all. "You must be really excited."

"Is there something you needed, Flynn?" If not GTFO.

"No. Other than to see your smiling face. It's been a regular occurrence lately."

"And your point is?"

"Well, it's obvious that something, or someone is making you happy, which is good for the rest of us."

"We'll see about that."

After a normal work day, Sharon got home and took a shower, moisturizer, perfume, etc. She stood in her underwear, unsure of what to wear. What kind of place was the Braxton anyway? She picked up her phone, planning on calling Alistair when she saw a message. Her son had texted her asking what she wanted for her birthday next month.

_To see you_ she answered, no need for him to waste what little money he had on junk she didn't want.

She called Alistair.

"Hello. Mr. Callahan speaking."

"Very cute."

"I try. What is it?"

"I wasn't sure what to wear tonight."

"Well, when you're in my bed, I expect you naked."

"Very funny, I meant to this Braxton place."

"Well, no jeans or sneakers, but I wouldn't expect you to wear that. It's not black tie or anything, but it's kind of fancy."

"You're super specific."

"A cocktail dress would be fine, or a skirt and a blouse- especially if the blouse has a plunging neckline or maybe some buttons missing."

"I'll see you later."

Sharon had a little black dress, which seemed just right for this occasion. She didn't want to look too fancy or too casual and the dress was comfortable without being too short. She would put it on closer to 9PM. For right now, lounging on the couch in her underwear and reading.

The doorbell rang.

Crap, he's early. Sharon went to the door and quickly pulled him inside.

"I don't think you can wear that to the club, but if you wanted to stay in for a romp, then …."

Sharon shut him up with a kiss. Then, she went to put on her dress.

Alistair waited in the living room, and he noticed Sharon's iPad. There was a Skype message. He answered it. Kelly Raydor, a relative. "Hello."

"You're not my mother."

"Are you a cop too? You're mighty observant," he quipped.

"Are you Alistair?" Kelly was intrigued.

"I see my reputation precedes me."

"I'm her daughter, Kelly." _Damn he's cute, and he has on some nice clothes. Mama better hold onto him._

"Well, I can see you inherited your mother's good looks."

Kelly blushed. "So are you taking my Mom somewhere nice?"

Getting grilled already. "I am. We're meeting some friends of mine at the Braxton."

"Isn't that like one of LA's hottest clubs?"

"It is." She knows her stuff.

"I can't believe my mother of all people is going to a club and I'm studying for the GMATs."

"Life's a bitch, isn't it."

"Who are you talking to, Alistair?"

BUSTED

"Your lovely daughter."

"What!"

"Gotta go!" Kelly hurriedly signed off.

"Now you've scared her away."

Sharon came out, looking marvelous in her dress, still messing with her hair and staring at Alistair.

"What! She messaged you, but you were changing, so I figured we could chat."

She gave him a disapproving look. "Whatever Kelly told you about me isn't true."

"Of course, Dear," he said in a snooty tone.

She shook her head. "Shall we?"

They drove off. Alistair usually took a limo to these places, but he didn't plan on binge drinking, so he didn't need one this time. There was a lot of traffic, which is why Alistair arrived early and eventually they got there.

The line was huge, going around the block as people waited to get in. Every few minutes, an impatient female would try and sass her way in, saying that "insert celebrity" was waiting for her. It didn't work. Sharon turned to the left.

"Where are you going?"

"The line is that way."

"Not for us." He lead her to the front, walking briskly past the crowd. The bouncer saw him. "Good evening, Sir" and let him in.

"We didn't have to wait?"

"I have a table here. Also, my friend owns this place. I've been coming here since they opened."

_Lifestyle's of the rich and famous_, Sharon thought as they made their way upstairs. Channing and Mischa were at the bar. "There he is, finally." Channing slapped him on the back. "Hey, this is Sharon." Channing extended his hand to shake hers. He was a bit surprised stunned. _She wasn't the type he usually dated. She was older, seemed mature, and probably had an IQ higher than a peanut. Was this a midlife crisis?_

"Mischa don't be rude," Channing hollered at her.

"What?" She had been immersed in her mojito, unaware that Alistair had finally arrived. She moseyed on over.

"Hi. I'm Mischa." Sharon knew exactly who she and Channing where. Even she had television, not that she watched it all that often.

Sharon shook her hand, suddenly feeling like she was very old.

"Shall we?" They were seated at Alistair's table. He ordered a bottle of wine and some crab cake sliders.

Channing and Mischa looked at each other. His usual at this place was a bottle of tequila and a taco platter. _Was he growing up?_

Kate showed up, when she felt like it. She was surprised to see Alistair with a date, and although she was polite to Sharon, it was obvious that she was not happy with her presence. Sharon could feel the tension. Alistair was either oblivious or was ignoring it. His hand found Sharon's, and he squeezed.

Mischa started with the questions. "So how did you two meet?" Sharon looked at him, unsure as to how to describe their first meeting. "Well, Sharon works for the police, and I was a potential witness, so she interviewed me." He left out the part about his girlfriend's murder. It was kind of yucky when he thought about it.

"Does she like cuff you when you're bad?" Channing quipped, that one was a little too easy.

"I keep them in my purse, so if there's any funny business here," Sharon said with her serious voice, scaring Channing before he realized it was a joke.

Alistair told his friends to order what they wanted. Mischa wanted margaritas and Channing went for whiskey sours. Sharon got another glass of wine and Alistair stuck with water. Kate didn't order anything.

They spent the evening chatting and snacking and drinking, but it got to the point where even Alistair couldn't ignore Kate's bad mood.

She got up and stalked off. Alistair followed her. "Katie, what's gotten into you?"

"What's gotten into me? What's gotten into you? First, you sleep with me. Then you act like I don't exist. Then, it's because you're dating a cougar and now you want to know what's wrong with me? What's wrong with me is that I spent years waiting, hoping that you would see me as more than just a drinking buddy. When it seems like my wish finally came true, you decide oh no, Katie's a one night stand. Sharon's the kind of woman I want to settle down with."

What the hell? He and Kate had their playful banter over the years, but that's all he thought it was. Has she been into him this whole time? Did he totally miss the obvious?

"Look, Kate. I'm sorry if I led you on. (I don't think I did, but whatever.) That night shouldn't have happened. We were both too drunk, and I brought you home so we could both just go to bed."

"You sure didn't say no."

"I'm not saying that. I'm just saying that we were both hammered, and maybe, if we weren't, we would have seen that night differently. I never wanted for anyone to get hurt."

"Well, sometimes, what you want doesn't happen." Kate left. Alistair shook his head and went back to the group.

The night ended shortly after that for Alistair and Sharon. He ordered another round of drinks for his friends, and then the couple left.


	16. P

**P is for Passion**

* * *

The last few weeks have been very good for Alistair and Sharon. They more they got to know each other, the more they liked each other and the happier they became. Everyone noticed a change. Major Crimes, Alistair's father, even the gossip magazines noticed a more mature and composed Mr. Callahan. What happened to his drunken scandals and revolving door of girlfriends?

Sharon's birthday was approaching. Her children would be visiting her, as usual, and they would go out to dinner, like usual. This time, for the first time, she would be bringing along a suitor who was not their father. Only time would tell how this turned out.

For right now, however, Sharon had to work. She and her squad had trial prep. A deal they had procured earlier fell through when the defendant realized that a conviction would almost guarantee his deportation back to Romania after he served his sentence. Rios was taking this case to trial and wasn't she just a peach.

Eventually, the day was over and Sharon headed home. She took off her pumps and got ready to change into a more comfortable outfit when her phone rang.

"Hello."

"Hey Baby, are you home from work?"

"I am. Are you coming over later?"

"Of Course. Did you want me to bring dinner?"

"I thought we could make something. I have sole and I have brussels sprouts."

"Alright. I'll see you at about 7."

* * *

Sharon changed into a sundress and began to watch tv. About an hour later, her doorbell rang. Sharon opened the door, grabbing Alistair by the collar and pulling him into the apartment. His hands found her waist, and he pulled her into a kiss. Her hands found his chest, and they were in a tender embrace. Alistair reveled in her familiar scent, a combination of her shampoo, perfume, and the matching soap and lotion set that she used. His hands started to move down her back to her behind when she broke the kiss. "Let's cook."

Sharon took out the brussels sprouts and began to wash and cut them. Alistair seasoned the fish with salt and pepper. They took out two skillets and got each of them hot.

Sharon seared the brussels sprouts in olive oil with some minced garlic and shallot. Sharon added some crispy bacon and sun-dried tomatoes and they finished it off with a little cream sauce. Alistair floured the sole and gave it a quick sear in butter. He added rosemary to the pan to give the fish some flavor. The dish was simple but elegant. They plated the food and sat down with a bottle of Chardonnay.

They made small talk about their days at work. Alistair heard more about the infamous Emma Rios and he told her about the latest drama-bomb in his office. A newspaper they own decided to run a story about an alleged affair that a judge had with the prosecutor during a murder trial. The defendant was seeking to have his conviction thrown out, alleging that his trial had been unfair. The two denied any affair, but the defendant's attorney claimed that cell phone records, photographs, and witnesses would corroborate it all. The judge put a gag order on the case, preventing either side from talking to the press about the evidence. To get around this, a journalist from their paper sat outside the courthouse, asking witnesses in the hearing to divulge what they testified to and what they saw in the room. He used this information to write his story, and now the prosecutor was seeking criminal charges for obstruction of justice for "tampering" with the court's proceedings, even though the gag order only applied to the parties in the case (not the witnesses), and the journalist didn't get any information from the parties. The company was at odds over how to resolve the problem. Some wanted to just leave it to general counsel. Alistair insisted on not only private, counsel, but the best they could get. "The whole point of journalism is to get to the truth and to share it with the world. If we don't defend our journalists when they go the extra mile and the government retaliates, they we may as well get out of the business." He had a passion for the truth, yet another thing he and Sharon had in common.

After dinner, they cleared their plates and headed to the couch. Sharon could tell that Alistair was still riled up over the day he had this morning. Miles Davis played in the background as Sharon nuzzled next to her lover. He turned to her and kissed her softly. This ignited a flurry of short, quick kisses, both seeking to gain control. Sharon pulled his bottom lip between her teeth, tugging at him as her fingers went through his hair. Her legs straddled his left thigh as she leaned into him. His hands found her hips, pulling her closer to his torso as he grabbed onto her behind. She moaned into his mouth and began to nip at his neck, quick, sharp bites, careful not to leave a mark. They groped and grappled with each other, tongues lashing and hands roaming, neither ready to surrender, their lust compounding as they ground against each other. Finally, they both had enough and Alistair picked her up, carefully holding her by her hips as she draped her arms around his shoulder and he took her to bed.

* * *

Jonathan and Kelly decided to surprise their mother by flying in a little early for her birthday tradition. She wasn't expecting them until late tomorrow. Luckily, they had a key to the condo. They landed at LAX and took a cab to their childhood home.

"You think Mom's home already."

"No," John answered. "Knowing her, she's stuck on a case."

They entered the place. "We should really confuse her. Make brownies or something and just leave them on the table. She'll get home and be baffled."

They got to the kitchen and started to get out bowls and a baking pan. John opened a cupboard, looking for brownie mix when he heard a noise.

**Bed hitting the wall. **They couldn't hear it, but soft cries and moans were on the other side of the door.

"What was that?" Kelly asked.

"Probably the radiator." Kelly preheated the oven, and John started pulling ingredients from the fridge. They fussed over which order to add the ingredients to the bowl when they heard another sound, this one clearly their mother.

"Oh God!"

John was mortified. Kelly was giggling.

"Maybe we should go."

"And miss out on the brownies?" Kelly found this funny more than anything else. John was not amused.

"Oh! Oh! Oh!"

"I'm leaving." John retreated into his old room. Kelly continued to make the batter and then stuck the tray in the oven. She then went to find her brother.

* * *

"Yes! Yes" The noises continued until there was silence.

Sharon sighed out loud as she fell towards the bed onto her lover's chest. The duo were tired, sweaty and covered in bite and scratch marks. They cuddled, basking in their afterglow, as they tried to get their heavy breathing back to normal. Sharon's hair was nice and silky. Alistair liked that her hair was tickling his shoulder. Neither of them would be moving for quite a bit.

John gave a look to his sister. _Do NOT say anything!_

Kelly couldn't help but tease. "Well, at least Mom is having a good time."

"Why did you have to go there?"

"She's entitled to some fun."

"Ugh! Gross." John liked to think that his mother only had sex twice in her life. Given her marriage, that wasn't inconceivable. Her relationship with their father was terse at best. He never understood why she would let him come back drunk and busted so many times.

Alistair started kissing Sharon's jaw line.

"Baby, I'm so gross right now." Sharon kept thinking shower but getting up was hard.

"I want you." So they were a little sweaty, big deal?

"Shower," she said as she leaned back towards a pillow.

"Alright." He kissed her and then picked her up, carrying her to the shower where their rendezvous continued.

Kelly went to check on the brownies. "The coast is clear," she called to John. He came out. Hearing nothing, he proceeded towards the kitchen. The brownies would be a few minutes. They sat in the kitchen and waited.

Sharon and Alistair left the shower, dried off, and Sharon put on pjs while Alistair stayed in his bathrobe.

Sharon left the bedroom for the kitchen. When she got there, what a surprise!

"Kelly, John! I thought you two weren't coming in until Friday."

"We shouldn't have," John muttered. Kelly elbowed him.

"We wanted to surprise you," Kelly said as she got the brownies out the oven. "We figured you were at work, but I guess the surprise was on us. Lesson learned."

Sharon blushed. Hearing voices, Alistair left the bedroom. Once in the kitchen, he stood face to face with his girlfriend's progeny.

"Hi Alistair, It's great to finally meet you."

"You knew about him?" John obviously did not.

"Uh Hi!" _Did they always just appear randomly? If so, this could get awkward._

Well, it already was awkward. Alistair went back to put on some clothes. Sharon sat down with their kids, inquiring about their day.


	17. Q

**Q is for questions**

* * *

"So how was work today, Mom?" Kelly was surprised but happy to see her mother working less for once.

"It was pretty routine. We just had paperwork to fill out. How was your flight?"

"It was fine, until this drunk guy started fussing with the stewardess who cut him off. They had to threaten him with an air marshal to get him to sit down and shut it."

"How Lovely," Sharon said in her slow, sarcastic voice.

Kelly and Sharon continued to chat. John just sat in the corner. His mother looked at him. "Are you alright?"

"He's traumatized," Kelly laughed.

"Shut up."

"Civility," Sharon chastised.

Alistair came back out, wearing a t-shirt and pajama pants.

"Someone stays here often," Kelly remarked.

Both Sharon and John glared at her.

"So, how did you meet my mother?" John stared down his mother's mate.

"We met at her job," Alistair answered, carefully. "After her case, we kept crossing paths, and the next thing you know, we were dating."

Sharon was quite happy. She hoped her children would like him. Kelly seemed to approve. John not so much.

"So what do you do?"

"I am the chief marketing officer for Callahan Enterprises. Which means that it's my job to make sure the company's making a profit. I am in charge of the the advertising, marketing, sales."

John was perplexed, what was his mother doing with a younger man who was seemingly loaded?

"That must be a lot of responsibility," Kelly commented.

"It is, but I have a great team, and we've been doing really well this quarter."

"Doing what?" John asked, a little bluntly.

"Selling political ads, sports memorabilia ads, launching a clothing line with Calvin Klein."

"You've been a busy bee," Kelly added.

John wasn't sure what annoyed him more, that Sharon was cavorting with this guy or that his sister seemed to hang on his every word.

"These brownies are good," Alistair took a big bite.

"Thanks!" Kelly smiled. She was happy to see her mother happy and Alistair was easy on the eyes.

Sharon went to get some milk. She came back and Alistair took her hand in his, rubbing it affectionately. Sharon smiled at his touch, her lips finding his cheek.

"So, John," Alistair started. "What do you do?"

"I'm work in faculty support at Northwestern." It wasn't the most exciting job, but it paid the bills and gave him a good pension and healthcare.

"How do you like Chicago?"

John shrugged. "It's alright, I guess."

After a bit more chatting, John excused himself and went to his old room. Sharon and Kelly put away the dishes. "Do you know what's wrong with your brother?"

"Mentally, or physically?"

"Kelly," her mother hissed. "I meant his attitude. He's been grouchy all evening."

"He's probably unnerved by the realization that you have a sex life."

"What?"

"I'm serious."

* * *

Sharon shook her head and went to bed. Alistair followed her. Kelly camped out in front of the tv.

John was on google. He started with "Alistair and Callahan Enterprises." A picture of Alistair Callahan appeared. _So he works at his daddy's company?_ John looked for more. There were many photos of him, with booze in his hands, surrounded by various celebrities and TMZ had an interesting take on his mother's boyfriend: drunk, spendthrift, a womanizing playboy. _Mom sure can pick 'em._

He kept googling, trying to figure out more about this guy. "Alistair Callahan AND girlfriend."

He found an article about Molly. " Molly Quinn Anderson, 34, girlfriend of wealthy CMO murdered." _Was he a suspect?_ John kept looking. "Wealthy business woman arrested in Anderson murder." He read an article on the Kramers and then went to go find Kelly.

She was watching The Three Stooged.

"Kelly, come check this out!"

She got up, wondering what got him so excited.

He showed her the articles. _His last girlfriend got murdered?_ How sad.

"That's too bad."

"That's it?"

"What else is there?"

"He said that he and mom met at her work."

"AND?"

"And her work is solving murders, which means …."

"Maybe they met while she was solving his girlfriend's murder?"

"YES!"

"So?"

"What do you mean so? How could he go from grieving boyfriend to mom so fast."

"Maybe they weren't that serious. The newspapers like to play up things."

"How could Mom date a murder suspect?"

"Maybe he was never a suspect. Although if looks can kill..."

"Kelly!"

"What? He's nice (and hot) and Mom likes him. Isn't that enough?"

"You really don't care."

"I just think your jealous. Mom has been single since forever, so it's just been us in her lives. Now, she has someone else to share it with, which means less Mom for you. Mom needs to move on, and so do you."

"Piss off!"

"Gladly!"

Kelly went right back to tv.

"Who does she think she is?" he hissed.

Alistair was kissing on Sharon's shoulder, but she seemed distracted. "What is it, Baby?"

"It's John. He's been in a bad mood all day."

"Maybe his girlfriend dumped him."

"He never mentioned one."

"You're his mother. Maybe he never told you about her."

"I don't think that's it."

"Maybe it's not. Ask him tomorrow"

Sharon fell on Alistair's shoulder and drifted to sleep.


	18. R

**R is for reasons**

* * *

John couldn't figure out why his mother was with a guy like Alistair. Wasn't dealing with his father's drinking and gambling enough? Why would she go from a wannabe playboy to the real thing.

John's cell phone rang. "Hi Dad." Jackson seldom called.

"Hey, Johnny." John hated being called Johnny. "I was wondering how your mom is doing. You and Kelly are down there for her birthday right."

"Yeah. She's doing just dandy."

John and Jackson had an awkward conversation. He wasn't sure if he should mention Alistair to Dad or not. He decided on not. Finally, the conversation was over.

John went into the kitchen. His mother was with Alistair, making pancakes. He wanted juice, but he didn't want to go over there. He just froze.

"I love making breakfast with you," Alistair told her as she poured the batter on the skillet. Sharon turned, kissing him on the mouth. He pulled her closer, his hand on the small of her back. They broke apart when Sharon saw John, standing there. "Good morning John."

"Hey," he mumbled.

Kelly didn't come out until breakfast was ready. She looked like she could have slept all day. "These pancakes are the best."

Sharon used John's favorite recipe, hoping to get even a slight smile on his face. It didn't work. Alistair had to go to work. He kissed Sharon on the cheek and drove off.

Kelly could sense the tension and opted to Skype with her friends instead of watching her mother trying to console her whiny brother.

John went to get up too when his mother looked at him. "Can we talk?"

He sat back down. "What?"

"I don't know what's gotten into you. You've been unhappy since you got here."

"I don't see why you're with him." He said bluntly.

"What?" Sharon hadn't made a list. She didn't know how to answer the question

"After all that Dad put you through, you went for a notorious playboy?"

"He's changed." Damn Google!

"Didn't you once tell me that leopards don't change into tigers?"

Sharon looked at her son. "I did, but that doesn't mean that leopards can't become better leopards."

John glared at her. Is that all she's got?

"Look, if you told me two months ago that I would be with him, I would have thought you were crazy, but behind his reputation is a great man; one who is thoughtful, caring, and quite intelligent." (not to mention great in bed and a great mixologist)

John realized that she was serious. He didn't like Mr. Callahan, but he wasn't going anywhere, anytime soon.

"I realize that this isn't easy for you, but Alistair means a lot to me, and it would be nice if the two of you got along."

"I'll try." He didn't understand her reasons, but he'd have to try and accept her decision.

"Thank you. Now I have to get ready for work. I'll see you at dinner."

Sharon went to her bedroom. Kelly went to watch tv and John tried to read, but he kept getting distracted. Alistair really irked him, and he didn't fully understand all of the reasons why.

Alistair was in a great mood. Tonight was dinner with his girlfriend (and her kids). He got her the perfect present, not too flashy, although if she wanted, he would have bought her everything in Tiffany's. His phone rang.

"Callahan."

"You sounded so authoritative."

"Kelly, what can I do for you?"

"I'm just calling to give you a heads up."

"About the inquisition?"

"About my stupid brother. He's been a Moaning Myrtle all day, and I don't want him to screw up Mom's birthday dinner."

"It's because of me, isn't it."

"It's because he's an ass."

"How about I try and talk to him before dinner?"

"Can't hurt." Maybe it could, who knows.

"See you tonight."

"What did you get Mom?"

"You'll see."

* * *

Alistair hung up. What is with that boy? His mother's been single for long enough. Maybe he thought she'd die a spinster. He left work early to go find John. He got there and John was sitting in front of Into the Wild.

"John!"

He snapped up. He had been sleeping in his book. "What?"

"You, me, bar, let's go."

John was puzzled by the lack of words, but some bourbon sounded nice right now.

They didn't speak the entire car ride. Steppenwolf played as Alistair drove. John wouldn't admit it, but he was impressed. Alistair had a very nice car.

When they got there, John was surprised to see them in a dive bar. He expected a swankier location. "You drink Scotch?"

"I prefer bourbon."

"Two glasses of the Knob Creek."

"Good choice," John muttered.

The bartender got their glasses. Alistair left his card and opened a tab. "So let's cut to the chase shall we."

John looked at his glass and started to drink.

"You don't like me. It makes your mom sad that you don't like me. I want her birthday dinner to be a fun event for all involved, so whatever you want to get off your chest, go ahead and say it."

"I'm going to need more bourbon."

"Another round, good Sir."

The bartender brought two more glasses.

John took a big swig and then started. "Where should I start?" John hadn't eaten lunch. The booze hit him a bit quickly. "You're too young for her; you have a smarmy look about you; my mom doesn't date- I don't know what she's thinking right now, and you have money coming out of every orifice." The lat part he said hurriedly.

"My money is the problem?"

"I don't like the idea of my mother's affections being bought. What happens when you want to just go ahead and buy someone else."

"Your mother doesn't care about my money."

"She doesn't?"

"I tried to wine her and dine her, and she rejected me like the first three times I asked her out."

"What?"

"I'm not going to just get bored and buy myself a new girlfriend. Your mother has something that I couldn't buy with all of the money in the world, and I'm grateful that she was willing to give me a chance."

John was confused. He sounded sincere and seemed less smarmy, although maybe that's the booze talking. "Well, I guess you're not that bad."

"See, common ground. Bartender, can we get some fries?"

"Make those cheese fries," John added. "And can I get another bourbon?"

They headed out after that and got to the house.

"Don't tell Mom that I'm drunk."

"Why would I tell her? She'd blame me for getting you drunk."

John laughed. "Yeah, she would."

They got to her condo and John went to take a shower. He got dressed and was just tying is tie when his mother came home.

"You look handsome."

"Thanks Mom."

* * *

Alistair came out in his suit, looking dashing, as always. Sharon kissed him on the cheek and went to get ready. She took a quick shower, put on her dress, fussed with her hair and then put on her jewelry and makeup.

A limo arrived for them. Kelly was escstatic. "You didn't have to," Sharon told him

"This was for me; now I don't have to be the designated driver."

She shook her head. John found the minibar. He shot the bourbon before his mother could object. "John!"

"What?"

They got to the restaurant and when they were seated, Sharon was surprised that they had a private room.

They sat down and were brought menus. The dinner was a lovely affair. Somehow, all of her favorite foods were specials on the menu. Alistair denied any involvement, but Sharon was skeptical. After dinner, she was brought a birthday cake and they sang to her, to her chagrin. They got home where a stack of presents were awaiting her.

"What's all this?"

"Most of those are from your friends and coworkers." FID, Major Crimes got her a gift, etc.

Sharon began to open them. John got her a very nice scarf. Kelly got her a Kama Sutra book, which made everyone glare at her. She was cracking up. John was mortified and Alistair shook his head. Major Crimes got her a spa package. It was a gift for them too; maybe they'd get the weekend off when she did. Finally, Alistair's gift. It was heavy. Sharon left it on the table and opened it. "A film wheel?"

"Not just any film wheel. The Thin Man. The rest are in my house."

"You got me the original Thin Man." She shrieked happily. "How did you find it?"

"I have my ways."

"I don't have a projector."

"But I do."

"Was this a trap so I'd come visit you more often?"

"Maybe." He smirked.

"Well, it just might work." She kissed him "Thank you. These presents are wonderful. Kelly, you're grounded."

Everyone laughed at that. "My gift was the most practical."

Sharon rolled her eyes. Why on Earth would she buy that book for her mother?


	19. S

S is for Solace

Sharon had a terrible day. They had remains that they could not identify. The victim had apparently been shot, but Morales couldn't prove time of death. The press was all over the story, and there was nothing to say. Chief Taylor was on her case about how expensive this case had become. Sharon insisted that the grounds be searched to make sure that this wasn't a mass grave. They needed a lot of equipment to avoid unnecessary digging and that was expensive.

Her staff felt overworked and under appreciated, and she knew the feeling. Everyone was ready to go home and when Sharon finally packed up for the day, and when she got home, she planned on getting a glass of wine, a nice bubble bath and going to sleep. This would be the perfect time to snuggle with Alistair, but he had a meeting in New York and he would not be back until tomorrow. She parked her car and went up to her apartment. She was surprised to see Jackson waiting for her.

"What are you doing here?"

"It's nice to see you too, Sharon."

"What do you want?"

"Can't I just wish you a happy birthday?"

"You could have done that over the phone."

"I thought a face to face visit would be nicer."

"Well, now it occurred, so if you don't mind, I'm going to take a bath."

"Want some company?"

She scowled at him.

"You waiting for your loverboy."

"Excuse me."

"You didn't think I'd found out. We are still married." He saw the pictures from her birthday dinner on Facebook. He had been surprised to see Sharon with a younger man, especially one with his reputation.

"In name only," she hissed. Who was he to give her a hard time about Alistair, after all the drinking and all of the floozies. He lost the right to interfere with her love life a long time ago.

"I still care about you, and I wouldn't want to see you get hurt with a guy like that."

"You mean a guy who can support himself, remember my birthday and not gamble away every dollar he ever made."

"You wound me," he said sarcastically. "I meant a man who's known for spending outrageous amounts of money on everything in a short skirt. Unless, are you wearing shorter skirts for him?"

"Get out!"

"Are you sure about that?"

"I am armed."

"Alright, but when this fails, which it will, you know how to find me."

Sharon turned the deadbolt and went to her bedroom. She was a mix of furious and scared. How dare Jackson upend her life like this, but what if he was right? What if she and Alistair were too good to be true. The thought made her feel sick. She could really use a hug right now. She got a phone call; it was Alistair's secretary, June.

"Sharon?"

"Hi June. What can I do for you?"

"Are you at home?"

"I am. is it urgent? I had a long day."

"Oh no. It's just that Alistair had a gift basket he wanted me to bring to you. It will just take me a minute."

"Oh Thanks," Sharon mumbled, not expecting that. How did Alistair know she was having a miserable day?

"I'll see you in 20 minutes."

Sharon could wait another 20 minutes for her bath. Sharon sat on her couch. She didn't want to start her bath because she would be all wet when June arrived. She wanted to start on the wine, but she hadn't eaten in hours, and she needed some food. Hopefully, this gift basket would have some snacks.

Sharon turned on the television and didn't pay attention to the news until her doorbell rang. June arrived with a basket holding bath salts, candles, chocolate, a bottle of wine and those spa masks for your face. There was also a bag of Thai food in her hand. "Is that for me too?"

"Yes. Pad Thai, chicken satay and spring rolls."

Sharon was ready to melt. "How did he?" He saw the news coverage, realized Sharon was probably swamped and knew exactly what Sharon wanted when she was stressed: thai food, a nice bath and some wine.

"He always knows what people need. My car broke down last winter and when I went outside, there was a new one. He denied buying it, but unless it was the tooth fairy.…"

"Thank you for bringing all of this."

"All in a day's work." June went home.

Sharon ate her dinner and then brought her bath salts and her bottle of wine into the bath tub. After a nice long bath, she dried off and went to bed.

Alistair flew home the next morning and although he wanted to hear Sharon's voice, he knew she was busy and didn't want to add to her stress. He got home and changed before work.

Sharon's next day was a bit easier. The lab at UCLA was hopeful that they would identify the victim soon. Their victim was a male, mid twenties, probably caucasian, and had been dead for about two years. They were running his specifications through missing persons. Once they had a name, they could really get started. SID had the bullet, and they were looking for a possible match. Their victim was a male, mid twenties, probably caucasian. When Sharon got home, she had a message on her voicemail.

"Hey Sharon. I know you have quite a case ahead of you, but I would like to see you when you have the time. The ball is in your court."

She could really use that hug. She called him. "Can you come over?"

"I'll be there in 30."

Sharon started to make spaghetti. She just strained the noodles when she heard a knock at the door. She opened the door and he greeted her with open arms. She fell into him, catching him off guard with how forcefully she hugged him. She was very relieved to have him back.

"Rough week?" He was still holding her as he led her to the couch, kicking the door closed behind him.

"It was miserable," but she felt much better now. He always knew just what to do when she was down, and she did the same for him. They both had their issues, but they could always give the other solace.


	20. T

**T is for trust**

* * *

Sharon did not have the easiest time trusting people, professionally or personally, but over time, she was beginning to soften. Her team brought another case to a close, and she was starting to feel more confident in their abilities as a squad. They were always competent, but Sharon was worried that they would push their boundaries too far, that their former leader rubbed off on them in a way that was irreversible. Sure Flynn and Provenza were not a fan of this new policy to make deals and they put up resistance at the beginning, but they were adapting and if they could, then perhaps this would all work out.

Sharon called Alistair before she got to her car. He was in a meeting, but he answered anyway. "Hey, Sharon. Did you close your case?"

"I did, and I'm on my way home."

"I'll be there in about an hour. I just have a meeting to wrap up."

"I won't keep you."

"Don't worry, this meeting concerns you too."

"It does?"

"I'll tell you about it when I get there. Bye."

It can't be a work meeting if it's about me. What is he doing?

Alistair left his lawyer's office and drove to Sharon's. When he got there, she was submerged in thought. She almost didn't hear him knock on the door. She got up, and answered it to see him holding a briefcase, but not the one he usually had. "Hey Honey," he greeted her with a kiss and then walked inside, leaving his briefcase on the floor. He hung up his jacket in the closet and then went to the fridge. "How about steak?"

"Sounds nice."

He found some potatoes in the cupboard and washed them. Sharon pre-heated the oven and they got to work. Sharon boiled potatoes and mashed them with milk, butter and chives. Alistair added crushed peppercorns and sea salt to the steaks and then put them in the oven. Then he seared them in a cast iron skillet. They plated the food and sat down.

"So you had a meeting today."

"I did."

"How did it go?"

"It was interesting. I learned a lot about community property."

"What?"

"Well, I wanted my lawyer to update my will, and it was more complicated than I thought it would be."

"I see. It's because I'm still married."

"Yes." Alistair never really asked her why they were still married, but it would be really nice if they got divorced. "Gifts are not community property, but their proceeds are still relevant for divorce purposes."

"What?"

"Let's say I change my will and leave you a trust in the event of my death, one that pays you 10K a month as long as you live. As soon as I die, Jackson could file for divorce. The payouts from the trust would be yours, they wouldn't get recognized as community property, which would have meant that he gets half, but instead Jackson could say look at all of the money she has, she should pay me alimony."

"You think Jackson would come after me for your money."

"Why wouldn't he? He's bitter, a lawyer, so he know's what he can get away with, and he may be a fool, but he's not dumb. Even if he lost in court, he could take up years litigating and could make this as expensive and unpleasant as possible."

That sounded like Jackson. "What did you want to do?"

"I want to send him on a one way ticket to Ecuador and call it a day, but I think a divorce would be the next best option."

Sharon didn't speak. She knew she should have divorced him years ago; then they wouldn't be in this mess, but getting a divorce now would open up old wounds; one's she'd rather leave closed.

"Are you okay?"

"I am. It's just that …."

"You weren't planning on changing the status quo."

"Yeah. I just like to …."

"Pretend he doesn't exist."

"You know me too well."

"Well, you can keep doing that. We'll let the lawyers take care of him, and then we can just move on with our lives."

"I'd like that." Sharon finally said after a bit of silence

It had taken Sharon a long time to be able to trust a man again after Hurricane Jackson uprooted her life time and time again. Her marriage, although albeit an estranged one, kept men at bay, which was nice at the time, but it was time to move on. She trusted Alistair now, not because he was perfect. He was far from it but because he was genuinely trying to be the best person he could be.


	21. U

**U is for Understanding**

* * *

Alistair had a hellish week at work. His company was facing a lawsuit because a company was unhappy with their advertisements in the Callahans' newspapers. Alistair had made sure that the ads met the specifications in the contract, but the company was still unhappy. Alistair suspected they wanted out of this contract because they got a better offer from a competitor. Alistair wanted to call their bluff, but some of the board members wanted to settle to avoid litigation.

Alistair was butting heads with everyone, the board, the offended party, even his staff was starting to get on his nerves. What was the point of having a contract if people couldn't live by the terms? He was ready to scream, but he had to stay calm. If he unraveled, then the wolves would eat him up.

After another day of no progress, Alistair headed home. He just wanted to sit on his couch, watch some television, and tell himself that this would all magically work itself out. When he got home, Sharon was already there. She could read the look on his face.

"Bad day?"

"Bad week."

He didn't want to talk about it. She didn't ask. When he sat down at the kitchen table, she started to rub his shoulders. His back had been full of knots all week. It was these unspoken moments that held them together. When he was too frustrated to talk, she had a way of understanding exactly what he needed. He closed his eyes. Dinner was already in the oven. Sharon had made lasagna.

Sharon's day at work was not the best either, but hers was manageable. Rios went on a power trip, again. Provenza went off on her like she was an offending grandchild. Normally, Sharon kept him in line, but she was fine with him telling her off. Of course, Rios went crying to Taylor and made a scene. Sharon escaped mostly unscathed. She would tell Alistair about it later but for now, she would be the understanding one.


	22. V

**V is for virtue**

* * *

Sharon tried to think of herself as virtuous. She was always one to color in the lines, keep her nose clean as she called it. She was a stickler for rules and knew them all, which made her good at her job but not very popular. She would close her cases and make her deals, but she wouldn't sweep anything under the rug, even if her bottom line got compromised.

Alistair, although well meaning, was always a boundary pusher. He wanted to see what exactly he could get away with and if the rules weren't amenable to him, he would get creative and try and reinterpret them. This could be about little things, like trying to use his frequent flier miles in a way that United forbid or creatively hiding his newspapers hard drives to delay a questionable subpoena from the US Attorneys' Office. He was very good at what he did and he earned himself a lot of friends in the process, but he always had to keep one eye open, incase his creativity irked the wrong person.

He and Sharon had an interesting debate about his tactics over dinner one night. Recently, the star reporter for one of Alistair's newspapers was investigating a federal judge for taking bribes. This judge was a favorite amongst prosecutors for being notoriously strict on defendants and Alistair expected some blowback from the government for his employee's work. Not surprisingly, the FBI showed up one day with a swat team and a warrant basically allowing them to take anything out of the office that wasn't bolted down. They were not amused, however, when they only thing they had acquired were archives of their paper as well as all of their comics. Everything juicy, like the identity their sources or their works in progress, were conveniently located on hard drives that were outside of the country, encrypted and accessed via cloud computing. Their star reporter, was conveniently sent on a new assignment out of the country when the government sought to interview her.

"Aren't you a little worried?" Sharon asked him.

"About?"

"Accusations of impropriety, being charged with obstruction of justice or conspiracy, hiding evidence, witness tampering…."

"I did none of those things."

"Really?"

"The last time I checked, keeping some assets out of the country was not a crime nor was sending your reporter to cover a major story."

"So it's coincidental that your reporter left before the government could interview her."

"And by interview her you mean harass and threaten with jail time for exercising her constitutional rights, absolutely. There was a major hurricane in Japan. We needed our best reporter on it, and we sent her."

"And you don't think the government is going to look into this."

"I'm sure they will, and when they do, they'll realized I did my homework too."

"Oh Really? What did you learn?"

"One, I learned that the warrant they served on us was a bunch of bunk. The magistrate who signed it will pretty much sign anything you put in front of him. Their warrant request was overbroad and they didn't offer enough evidence to justify a warrant in the first place. Two, I learned that the prosecutor who is in charge of this case is quite chummy with the judge who our reporter investigated, they're family friends and every time he is assigned one of her cases, she always wins, even some requests which are questionable at best. Three, the government is not allowed to pursue cases if the prosecutor is being vindictive. If she is motivated by her personal life, like her family's relationships, then any case that she brings is invalid and will be dismissed. I read the US Attorney's Manual as well as the relevant case law. She's toast."

Sharon had to chuckle at that. She was always a bit nervous (okay really nervous) when he got in hot water, but he was a newspaper man. He would always be in hot water, but he did do his homework. "And you have no qualms with pushing the envelope regarding the same laws that you accuse a judge of breaking."

"In a perfect world, everything would be black or white. The good guys would catch the bad guys, keep their noses clean and go home every night without a problem. But now, we're beyond just good and bad. We have desperate people who won't stop until they're out of options. It's not just one judge taking bribes. It's an institution that is determined to protect him, even though his behavior has been known about for almost a decade. If he goes down, a lot of other people will go down with him, and there are certain actors here, who can't afford to let that happen, so they will abuse their power: scare away witnesses, steal people's stuff, jail them illegally to make sure that they're still above water. If we don't fight to win, with every resource we can get, we will drown, so yes, I push the envelope to survive, but if I didn't, I'd be dead on arrival, and I'm just too pretty for that."

Sharon playfully swatted his arm. He was in contradiction to Sharon's entire career, but she could still see his virtuous nature. They both wanted the same thing, for the bad guys to go down, but they came from very different circumstances. He was the one who would test the waters. She was the lifeguard who would keep guys like him in line. They both needed each other. Alistair needed someone to remind him that there was a point where he was out of bounds and Sharon needed someone to show her that living on the edge could be fun.

They talked for hours, went through a lot of Scotch and at the end of the night, had a driver take them home. Sharon fell asleep in the car. Alistair carried her into their house. He always admired her ability to play by the rules, even when they were against her self-interest. He knew she put up with a lot because she always tried to play fair. When she was still married, Jack didn't see the kids all that much. When he did, he'd usually blame her for keeping them apart. "She put me out," he would say, not mentioning his drunk and gambling ways that led up to their fights. When they were older, they saw him for what he was, but as children, they often blamed their mother for his absence. She didn't try and defend herself or tell them what a louse their father was because that wasn't fair to them, no matter how unfair he was to her.

A lot of her past was painful. It took her a long time to be able to tell Alistair everything, but he was always open-minded. He never judged her; no matter how many mistakes she had felt that she made.

He knew she was virtuous even when she could not see it. He was amazed at her ability to forgive. It was one virtue that he did not have in abundance. When people burned bridges with him, he wrote them off entirely. Sharon was able to forgive, which he admired but did not understand. If he had, he would have realized that she was able to forgive Jackson because Alistair was there for her, to show her the compassion that she needed. It was only then that she was finally able to forgive herself.


	23. W

**W is for Wedding**

* * *

It had just started to snow. Winter was just beginning, the ground getting a fresh white blanket. . They were in Connecticut, where the Callahans were based, originally, having a wedding that was larger than Sharon ever could have imagined. The Callahans were an old money family. It was rude to have a wedding and not invite a whole slew of people including: business associates and high level colleagues, other old money families including neighbors, former college classmates, former high school classmates and the like. Sharon just needed her children with her although it was nice that some of her cousins and Major Crimes attended as well.

Alistair just needed Sharon, but he knew his dad would have a heart attack if he and Sharon had eloped. Unfortunately, Alistair's mother had long passed or she would have loved to plan this wedding. The Senior Callahan made sure to have a wedding that would have made her proud. The amount of money that he spent on this wedding was absurd. The food crafted by the culinary elite, the decorations, the hall, the music, the alcohol, every crafted to perfection. Even Provenza couldn't miss this event as this would likely be the best food he ever ate.

Alistair's best man was James Franco. They had gotten to know each other quite well, when his newspaper did a feature on James about his book and his upcoming screen play. He knew Sharon's daughter would be the maid of honor and thought they might enjoy each other's company. Kelly was a bit star struck when she found out, but the two were able to talk to each other quite easily.

The room was packed. The seating chart for the wedding had been quite a debate between the various wedding planners. One of Alistair's little cousins had been the flower girl. Jon gave his mother away. He was dumbfounded as to why her wedding had to be so huge, but he did see a lot of single women here, so this could work out well for him, at least for one night.

They said their I dos, shared a brief but affectionate kiss and they walked down the aisle, hand in hand and the procession began. They took their own limo to the reception. Alistair pulled her into a kiss as soon as the door closed. He was very eager. He hadn't seen her since dinner the night before. The women had whisked Sharon away, doing whatever nonsense they do to prepare her for this monstrosity of an event. Alistair took a shower, brushed his teeth and put on a suit. That was the extent of his preparations.

His hands found the small part of her back and he pinned her to the seat. He broke the kiss. "Want to take the long way there?"

"We can't abandon our guests." Although Sharon wouldn't mind a bit of their own fun.

"They're having a cocktail hour that's two hours. They won't miss us." Sharon didn't answer; she just gave him her sly smile. Alistair signaled the driver. They would be a little late.

* * *

When they did arrive, they got lambasted by the wedding planners. "Where have you been? Everyone's waiting for you."

"No they're not. I told Dad to start the drinks without us." The planners turned around. To their chagrin, everyone was drinking, well except for they alcoholics who had mocktails. They had a signature one for this event, made of mango juice, ginger and soda.

Alistair entered with his bride. They got rushed by his father's friends. They started peppering the couple with questions, where are they honeymooning, what are their post wedding plans, etc. They were going to start in Paris and after two weeks in France enjoying the various delicacies and vineyards, they would be going to Ireland and Scotland. Sharon had always wanted to go to her ancestral homeland and Alistair wanted to take her to Macallan's distillery. After their honeymoon, they would be returning to Los Angeles.

Alistair looked around. His father was shopping Alistair's sister to various suitors. "I'm going to see if she needs a rescue," Alistair told his wife as he sauntered off. A waiter brought Sharon a drink. There was a signature cocktail for her wedding made of Plymouth gin, Creme de Violette, lemon and Lillet Blanc, shaken with ice and then strained. It was quite refreshing. Flynn appeared. "This is quite an event."

"It is."

"Feel any different yet."

"Actually, I do."

It was good to see Sharon so happy. She deserved it. It was also nice that she would be on vacation for over a month.

Chief Pope was in attendance. He couldn't resist a chance to schmooze with the nation's elite. Chief Taylor was there with his wife.

Alistair's father scolded him. "You should be with your wife, not interfering with your sister's business."

"I like it when he interferes," Alexis needed the rescue.

Alistair and his sister joined Sharon and Flynn. "Hello, Mrs. Callahan," he greeted his wife with a kiss on the cheek.

The cocktail hour came to a close. Time for the dinner. Everyone got to their seats and the waiters began to serve. This was a seven course meal: appetizer, salad, pasta dish, entree, cheese plate, dessert, digestifs. The courses were small, but extravagant, poached quail eggs and duck pate, an endive salad with balsamic dressing, chicken ravioli, steak or crispy black bass with roasted potatoes, a choice of cheese and dessert was cake and/or mousse and the digestif was Cognac. There was also coffee offered as well.

The speeches came half way through the dinner and before the dessert came a champagne toast. They cut the cake and then after the digestifs came the couple's first dance. There were people everywhere: on the dance floor, in the lounges, some smoking cigars outside. Some of the younger couples moved on to their hotel rooms. Jon had been dragged upstairs by one eager, drunk heiress, willingly of course.

Sharon was in a wonderful mood. The food was amazing. They served her alcohol, liberally, and she had been nervous to meet all of these high profile people, but she was the bride. Everyone was there to kiss her feet, which was awkward at first, but it was nice to relax and be pampered. Alistair held her in his arms as he swept her across the dance floor. Alistair made a great lead; his mother signed him up for ballroom dancing lessons as a teenager. He had been to many weddings, but none quite like this. His father was determined to make this wedding bigger than his own, which was quite a feat.

Sanchez and Andrea were dancing together. Her face was rosy. She was rather drunk. Brenda was gossiping to Fritz. "I think they like each other."

The senior Mr. Callahan had a glass of Scotch in his hand as he watched his son and his new daughter in law. Once upon a time, he had never thought he would see the day where his son finally settled down. Now, he just needed to work on Alexis. She was chatting with some of her former classmates. One of them, an heir to the Captain Morgan empire, had taken an interest in her. She seemed happy.

As the night came to a close, people started going to their hotel rooms or home if they were local. Alistair arranged for an after party for those who wanted to keep drinking. Channing, Chris and Mischa came to mind. Kelly and James had gone to the after party as well.

Alistair took his wife upstairs. He carried her to their room, which of course, was the honeymoon suite in the hotel.


	24. X

X is for Xerxes

Sharon and Alistair had been back in town for about a week. The honeymoon was over. Her office was so nosy, where did they go, what did they eat, where are the pictures. She wouldn't let on that it was fun to reminisce, but instead she would tell them to calm down and try working, for once.

After a boring day of paperwork, she retired to her couch where she watched reruns of As Time Goes By. After talking on the phone with her son, she got in bed early. Alistair joined her when he got in from work. He had a late night in the office, something about a fired employee threatening to sue claiming office harassment. His supervisor had slapped him when he was sleeping at his desk for the third time that month. Supposedly, that's harassment.

He and Sharon were spooning as they slept peacefully, well, until Sharon's phone rang.

"It's a gruesome one, Captain," Provenza warned.

She got dressed and went to the crime scene. Alistair tried to go back to sleep, but without Sharon, that proved difficult. He never liked counting sheep. Instead he would count things he looked forward to the next day. It used to work. Now, not so much.

When she got there, Sykes gave her the rundown. "We think this was a dogfighting ring. The victim had been given to the dogs and well now, YUCK! We have animal control to take in the dogs where they will be sedated, checked for evidence and evaluated for injuries/trauma and they will likely have to be put down."

The victim's name is Joseph Smith. He had his drivers license on him. They're running his prints and his name to see if he had any priors. The house belongs to a Ryan Freeman, and he's MIA. They have a bolo out for him and his cars and they contacted ICE and the TSA incase he tries to flee.

Sharon talks to Morales who is disgusted, mainly about how can people take dogs and turn them into something that could do this to a person. "They're supposed to be man's best friend, not a lethal weapon."

They get back to the station and they run Mr. Freeman's credit cards and start monitoring his bank account. They found his estranged sister who agreed to come in for an interview. "Ryan has not been welcome in my parents' home for three years. He joined a gang and when they showed up to hide after a drive-by, my mom had enough. She ordered me to stay away too, incase we get associated with his antics. I haven't seen him in over a year."

Buzz and Sanchez go through fight videos that had been at the house and they recognize some of the dogs that were found at the scene. Buzz tries to figure out when the videos were made and identify adults seen and heard at the fights.

They find Mr. Freeman hiding out at a friend's house after getting an anonymous tip. He tries to run for it, but Sanchez tackles him in the backyard. They haul him in.

He denies knowing anything and tries to say he doesn't live there. He just bought the place. They ask him where does he live and he hesitates before saying he lives with his sister. They already know she hasn't spoken to him in a year and when they tell him that, he takes the 5th. Well, it's too late anyway. Buzz was able to match his voice as the one on the tape and they fingerprinted the dog ring as well as the in the house where they found the tapes. His prints are sure to be all over the place.

Eventually, he gets a lawyer who tries to say it was just an accident. Unfortunately, even if it were, if his death were part of a conspiracy, like running a dog fighting ring then his death is felony murder even if the mauling wasn't intentional. t

In exchange for all of his contacts, forfeiture of his income, a ban from owning any dogs for life and truthful testimony should he be called to trial, Freeman pleads guilty to manslaughter and conspiracy. Rios agrees to recommend 10-20 instead of life. He denies trying to kill Smith. He said they were training the dogs and Smith pushed one of them too far and they all turned on him and attacked. They wouldn't stop, so he ran away to protect himself.

After he found Sharon at home, drinking a glass of wine, signaling that her case was over, Alistair asked her what was going to happen to the dogs.

"The law requires that the dogs that were apart of the mauling be put down, but I think the Humane Society might sue to have them put in a preserve where they can live out what's left of their years in peace and far away from the public, so they won't maul anyone again. I would not be opposed to that."

The vet has a lot of injured dogs to treat and one of them was pregnant, very pregnant. It was a long delivery, but the following day, she gave birth to four, healthy pitbull puppies. He called Sharon to tell her about the discovery. "What shall we do with them?" The vet asked.

Sharon assumed that they would be adopted. She told Alistair the news and he said, "Xerxes."

"What?"

"We should adopt one of the boys and name him, Xerxes."

Eight weeks later, Xerxes Callahan was coming to his new home. Alistair wanted to office train him, so he could be Major Crimes' mascot. Sharon was opposed to this. "Why doesn't he go to your office?"

"Because I don't have a murder room for him to play in," he said coyly.

"He's not playing in my murder room!" Her squad loved the idea of an office puppy. She did not. They don't do enough work as it is. They do not need a puppy.

"I bet he'll be great at getting confessions. Who could lie to this precious face?" He's gray and white and has blue eyes. He's so cute. Sharon did like him, at home, as a house pet.

They took him outside and he had a big yard all to himself. He didn't make it very far outside. He just started rolling in the grass and was content with a little space.

Alistair texted a picture to Kelly and Jonathan and she called her mom to say she was coming to visit, no exceptions! Jonathan wanted to see the puppy too!

Xerxes came inside for his water and then he got put in his puppy playpen.

Time for a nap.

When Alistair had free time, he would bring Xerxes to visit his "mom," to her chagrin and the squad would go nuts. Provenza was the worst of them all. He would forget all about work just to play with a puppy.

"Don't tell Liz," he cautioned Flynn. Provenza actually loved dogs; he just hated Liz's dogs and he did not need her to know about his attachment to Xerxes. She might try and get more money for her stupid dog than she already does.

About 3 months later, a suspected killer escaped custody in the precinct. He tried to make a run for it, but he got tackled by a pit bull. Xerxes had been on his way to a visit the squad when he caught Will Prince trying to escape. He barked and snarled until Major Crimes caught up to him. Prince was taken to jail and Alistair was more convinced that he was the perfect Major Crimes dog.

Sharon rolled her eyes, but she was relieved that this was resolved without injury to anyone on her team and without an FID investigation.


	25. Y

**Y is for Yearbook**

* * *

Sharon kept all of her yearbooks. She even had her elementary school ones. She remembered jokes her friends told her in the third grade as well as drunken adventures she had with her roommates in college.

Every now and then, she would fish them out for a trip down memory lane. Alistair loved seeing this side of her. She would tell her stories like they happened yesterday and all of them helped shape the woman he grew to love today. He did not have all of his yearbooks, but he had some. He fished out his senior one. It of course, had been signed by all of the girls. The boys signed it too, but just their names and maybe a clever joke or insult. The girls wrote him freaking essays and Sharon loved to tease him and call him the high school gigolo.

Most of Alistair's pictures were of his friends. In many of them, the boys were drunk off booze they pinched from their parents' liquor cabinets, but there was one picture that stood out amongst the rest. It was him, his father, his mother, and his little sister. He was 12 years old and his sister was 5. He said that right before they took that photo, his mother told him that he had to promise her that he would always look out for Lexi, that one day, she would be gone and their father would be gone and it would be just them. He, at the time agreed, but didn't understand how true those words would be. He didn't know in four short years, she would be gone.

He put that photo in his yearbook, so he would never forget that moment. They were sitting by the fire when he told her how that picture came to be. She never looked at him or any yearbook the same way again. Every time she saw one, she saw him, a twelve year old boy with the whole world in his grasp and she saw a 17 year old him, looking back and already realizing that time was gone.

It was one of those bittersweet moments that made her love him even more, even when she didn't think that was possible.


End file.
